Worldly Secrets
by NeoRyu777
Summary: Sequel to A World of Difference Harry's going back for his second year at Hogwarts... the Chamber of Secrets is opened, and a further look into Dumbledore's increasing ambitions... ManipulativeDumbledore! IndependentHarry!
1. Houseelves and Training and Weasleys

NeoRyu777 here! As promised, it is the second Thursday after the ending of "A World of Difference," so I hereby present you with the sequel!

Disclaimer: Why yes, I DO own Harry Potter and Final Fantasy! brings out wallet to show off loads of cash, only to find it empty T.T Sorry, looks like I don't own them.

"Normal Speech"

_Thoughts_

_:Projected Thoughts/Legilimency:_

_"Parseltongue."_

**Worldly Secrets**

Chapter One: Houselves and Training and Weasleys, oh my!

Number Four Privet Drive. A place that has long been known for its standard of normalcy, and yet, for some reason unknown to the other occupants of Privet Drive, a five-year-old with jet black hair had fled from the premises almost seven years ago. The mystery of it all had been hushed up by Petunia Dursley, but now, as the gossips of Privet Drive spied a raven-haired boy in the Dursley vehicle, the mystery was about to be reopened.

Harry Potter tried hard, he really did, to keep from laughing as a mere hour after he returned to Privet Drive, women began hounding after his aunt, who reluctantly accepted the dinner proposals and lunch dates. After all, to do otherwise would be _abnormal, _and Petunia Dursley most certainly did not want that. In the end, Harry lost the battle after retreating to his room, where he began laughing uncontrollably. After several minutes, Harry regained control over himself. "Oh, I haven't laughed that hard in years…" Harry commented with another chuckle.

_:It will probably be the last time you laugh for a long time, as well.:_

Harry's amused mood died like a bug under pesticide at his tenant's grim comment. _Yeah, Quetzalcoatl, I know, _Harry agreed solemnly. He looked at his wand. _What I wouldn't give to be able to use magic undetected, _Harry thought longingly as he viewed the room he had been assigned. It was Dudley's second bedroom, which had toys strewn everywhere, most of them broken. His hand twitched, itching to take his wand and clean everything up, but he couldn't.

Harry unpacked swiftly and spent the next hour cleaning up. He quickly found a loose floorboard that he could use to hide his possessions, so Harry reluctantly put his Item Bag there; his relatives would surely try and take it if they saw the pouch on his belt.

"_Do you think I should put in my gunblade as well?" _Harry asked Seth, his loyal snake. Seth was no longer being hidden on Harry's arm with his Metamorphmagus powers, but was wrapped loosely around it, looking around. They had agreed mere minutes before that Seth would come in handy for scaring the Dursleys.

Seth considered for a moment. _"No. You never know when you might be attacked, and you do know the Memory Charm if necessary."_

"_Right,"_ Harry agreed, and finished cleaning up before putting Hedwig on the large desk he had moved near the window. "Hey Hedwig."His faithful snowy owl hooted softly as Harry unlocked her cage. "How you doing?"

Hedwig looked at Harry and nipped his finger affectionately. Harry smiled, stroking her in response. "This magic restriction over the holidays sucks," he informed his owl. "I can't practice my magic or anything. I don't even know how the Ministry tracks underage magic, so I can't risk trying to circumvent it." Hedwig hooted sympathetically. "Oh well, at least my Terran spells will replenish over the summer. I may as well start training a bit, try to get stronger."

Over the next several days, Harry trained himself, toning his muscles once again. After nine days, Harry was back in tip-top shape, ready for anything. Or at least, that's what Harry thought.

Harry had sent Hedwig out to ask the owner of Flourish and Blott's for an owl-order on the third day, realizing that he would need something else to occupy himself when he was physically tired until he could get out of Privet Drive. In the meantime, however, Harry spent his free time reacquainting himself with the area. When he got the owl-order form, he quickly spotted several innocent-looking books that Harry was eager to read.

Harry was confused as to why he hadn't gotten a single letter from his friends yet after three weeks at Privet Drive. He had sent a letter with Hedwig to each of them almost two weeks ago, just to see how they were, but Hedwig had returned without a letter each time, and none of his friends had replied.

After those three weeks, Harry was quite bored of his normal exercises, his reading, and exploring. He had long since finished his school homework to the best of his ability as well, which left him with little to do. Harry wanted heavy training, which usually consisted of killing difficult monsters to take their strength, or time with his friends, which he couldn't have.

So, with that thought in mind, he went downstairs to talk with his uncle. "Uncle Vernon," Harry greeted, forcing his tone to be polite. "Would you happen to know of a gym nearby?" _Perhaps if I train with others it won't be so monotonous. _

Vernon grunted. "Go down six streets, take a left, another three streets."

"Thank you." Harry walked out the door and followed Vernon's directions, which led him to a gym. Harry would have wondered how Vernon knew that so quickly, but then remembered a conversation he had overheard about Dudley getting into shape for boxing.

He entered, and a large burly man behind a counter glanced up. "Whatcha want, kid?"

"I'm here to lift some weights. How much?"

"Twenty-five pounds per month of membership," the man informed Harry.

_Thank Merlin I had the foresight of exchanging some of my Galleons for pounds, _Harry thought to himself as he paid.

"What's your name?" the man asked.

"Harry Potter."

"Right then," the man said as he swiftly wrote it down. "Sign this, please."

Harry glanced over it. It was fairly simple, really. It simply stated that the gym would not be held responsible for any injuries suffered within. He signed and passed it back to the man, who filed it.

"OK, you're good to go. Need some help for working out the machines?"

"Nah, I think I got it," Harry said with a smile.

"Well, call me if you need me. Name's Jack. The weight room is round the corner on the right."

"Thanks." Harry followed Jack's directions, and quietly raised an eyebrow and the number of heavily muscled sweaty men lifting weights. Harry took off his shirt and made his way to an unoccupied machine, setting it to a nice starting weight, at one hundred and fifty pounds.

"Sure you can do that, kid?" One of the men was watching him.

In answer, Harry quickly pulled down on the handlebars, lifting the weights with little difficulty. The man seemed satisfied and went back to his own devices while Harry did a few sets, raising the weight to two hundred pounds, until his arms were very sore. Harry worked on the other machines as well, exercising his back and legs.

After a few more days like that, a few of the men started chatting with Harry, who appreciated the opportunity to make small talk while working; it was much easier to train with someone. Many of the men were stronger than Harry physically, it seemed – though Harry was working without junctioning magic to his strength. Apparently the strength Harry gained from monsters was miniscule; killing monsters effectively strengthened the magic of the person, but it did not add to physical strength. All it did was make the improvement of physical fitness faster.

Harry had never realized that before, believing that his strength improvements over the years had been the work of killing monsters. He was right, but not in the way he thought – killing the monsters repeatedly using his heavy gunblade to cut through flesh and bone naturally strengthened his arms, and the speed training Harry put himself through strengthened his legs. Of course, the months of neglect during the school year had degraded Harry's fitness somewhat, but he was recovering from that quickly, thanks to his innumerable monster kills.

Harry enjoyed talking and working out with the men at the gym, but even so, he missed his friends. It was the second Saturday of July when he found the problem. Harry had just arrived back at Number Four Privet Drive when he saw another car in the driveway.

_Right, the new business deal thing Vernon was talking about for his drill business. _Harry knew he'd be pushing it if he barged in as he was, sweaty and nonchalant. So, with a frown, Harry shimmied up the tree to his unlocked window, opened it and climbed in.

Once inside, Harry's magic sense alerted him to something standing on his bed, and Harry whirled around. "What the hell?" Harry asked.

The creature in front of him was very short, perhaps reaching Harry's thighs. It had very long ears, and wide, large eyes. It was brownish, skin-wise, and it wore a pillowcase. "_Harry Potter_," it said in awe. "Such an honor it is."

Harry resisted the urge to rub his temples to ward away the impending headache he knew was coming. "Um, no offense, but just what are you?"

"A house-elf, sire. I is Dobby." The self-proclaimed house-elf jumped off the bed and bowed in front of Harry.

"Um, I haven't exactly heard of a house-elf before. I've been gone for six years, you see…" Harry said slowly, trying to draw out more information. "So, what does a house-elf do?"

"House-elves is the servants of wizards," Dobby said simply. "Each house-elf is bound to a master to serve for the rest of its life." His eyes widened as he remembered just why he had traveled to Privet Drive. "Dobby has most dreadful news!"

_Is the world ending? Are the worlds merging? Has Odin screwed up the timestream? Has Dumbledore realized his Memory Charm's gone? _Harry thought wildly, trying to think of just what could go terribly wrong. "Well, what is it?" he asked as gently as he could.

"It, it is difficult to explain…"

Harry knew how that could be, and realized that Dobby was here to help him. So, dropping his usual "Just _why _are you bothering me?" attitude, Harry sat down on the bed and patted the area next to him. "Here, why don't you sit down?"

Dobby's eyes widened and he burst into loud tears. Harry was genuinely concerned now for the mental state of this poor creature. Was such a simple act of kindness unheard of for house-elves? Or had he offended him somehow? "I'm sorry, did I offend you?" Harry asked quickly. "I meant no disrespect."

"No, you is just fine, Harry Potter," Dobby said tearfully, wiping his eyes with his pillowcase. "I is merely surprised, sir. Dobby had heard of Harry Potter's greatness, but not of his goodness. _Never_, in all Dobby's life, has he been invited to _sit down_, like an _equal_."

"Well, you can't have met many decent wizards, then," Harry said with a frown. _Are all house-elves treated like this? Are they all slaves? _

Dobby merely shook his head. He opened his mouth as if to speak, and then he seemed terrified. He quickly looked around, locating a lamp. He lunged at it, grabbed it, and started banging himself on the head.

"Stop it!" Harry hissed at him, wresting the lamp from Dobby's fingers. "My relatives are downstairs!" Dobby looked at the ground. "Just what happened there? Why did you start doing that?"

"Dobby is sorry, Harry Potter. Dobby almost spoke ill of his masters, so Dobby had to punish himself, you see?"

Harry felt a rush of pity for the poor creature. _A terrible injustice has been done to you, Dobby. _He suddenly had a brainstorm. "Do house-elves have to obey the rules of another house if they visit?" Dobby nodded. "Then the first rule of being in this house is no punishing yourself. I'll let you know if you do something that merits punishment."

Dobby nodded solemnly. "Dobby understands."

Harry smiled at him. "So, just what was this terrible news?"

Dobby's eyes widened. "Harry Potter must not return to Hogwarts!"

"And why not?" Harry asked, holding back his irritation.

"Great evil is going to Hogwarts next year, and Harry Potter will be in grave danger!" Dobby proclaimed in a horrified whisper.

Harry looked piercingly at Dobby. "I'm going to ask a couple yes or no questions, ok? Just answer if you can." Dobby nodded.

"Is the evil related to Vol – I mean You-Know-Who?" Dobby slowly nodded.

Harry paused. "Will he return if the evil continues?" Dobby nodded again.

"Then I have to return to Hogwarts," Harry concluded. "I have to stop this evil."

"No!" Dobby protested. "Harry Potter mustn't!"

"Would it help if I told you that I have a few secret weapons that will work against any evil?" Harry whispered in the tone of sharing a secret. _Quetzalcoatl, junctions please._

_:Done.:_

Dobby's eyes widened. "You is hiding your true power?" Harry nodded, and Quetzalcoatl disabled the junctions. "Dobby understands. Be careful, Harry Potter." Dobby snapped his fingers and disappeared. Then he reappeared again a few moments later with a bag of letters. "Dobby is very sorry, Harry Potter. He was stopping all letters, hoping Harry Potter would decide not to return to Hogwarts. Goodbye!" With another snap of his fingers, Dobby disappeared.

_That explains a lot, _Harry thought to himself as he rummaged through the letters and read the latest. Each of his friends was worried about his seeming lack of response, and Harry smiled warmly at their concern before writing each of them with an explanation.

Meanwhile, at Hogwarts, Dumbledore was thinking about Harry. _When should he be released from the Dursleys? Not too soon, or else his stay will not make enough of an impression, and it can't be too long, or else he'll rebel. Now that he's had a taste of a life without the Dursleys, he'll be willing to do anything to be rid of them… including going to the Dark. I cannot have him do that; he must be my weapon against Voldemort, the only threat to my supreme power. _

Dumbledore, unlike Voldemort, understood that true power came not from fear, but from love and respect. Voldemort intimidated his followers into submission, but only the most die-hard Death Eaters would sacrifice themselves for him, whereas Dumbledore had hundreds of people who loved him and would sacrifice themselves without thought. He did not even need to ask, and that made him much more powerful.

_The title of Dark Lord is not even close to the truth, _Dumbledore thought, fingering a blood-red stone in his pocket. _With the Sorcerer's Stone, I am immortal, and I have more magical power than anyone else save Riddle. Once he is gone, I will be not a lord, but a God! _

Time went on as it always does, and Harry's life grew a bit easier through his ability to communicate with his friends. It added a bit of variety into his otherwise monotonous routine, gave him something to look forward to. Each of his friends had been simultaneously relieved that Harry was ok and amused that Harry could attract trouble of all kinds.

Harry's growth in strength had been slowing rapidly by the time Harry was able to bench press two hundred and fifty pounds. A bodybuilder that Harry had befriended looked him over and told him that his build suggested that Harry's strength lay in his speed. Harry had no problems with that; speed was all he needed with his spells and his gunblade. In any case, Harry could always junction magic to his strength in emergencies.

_The question is, how do I improve my speed without drawing attention? _Harry asked that very question of the bodybuilder, and was answered with a shrug and an apology. It was only on the way home that he thought of magically enhancing the weight of his clothes. _It worked before, _Harry thought to himself. _The weighted outer clothes Shugui had me wearing allowed me to move faster when I wasn't wearing them. Only problem is, I can't exactly use magic outside of Hogwarts… _Harry suppressed the urge to curse. _I'll just have to wait until then._

_:So it would seem.:_

Harry sighed and entered his relatives' house once more, silently wondering if some cosmic deity had taken offense to his existence. He was never quite sure, as he had had more than his fair share of good fortune at some times, while at others his luck just seemed to hate him.

Now faced with the fact that any physical improvements over the next several weeks would be minor at best, Harry decided to improve his mind. He spent less time at the gym – though he did agree to go bowling with the friends he made at the gym every weekend until his school began again – and more time improving his Occlumency and Legilimency in addition to studying.

Harry used his time dedicated to Occlumency to slowly, painstakingly create false memories and place them outside his shield. It was slow going, as Harry tried to view the memory from an outsider's perspective. _Is there sufficient detail? Does it seem realistic with what Dumbledore did? _Harry also tried to include unpleasant memories of being forced to work all the time over the summer. He could only hope that Dumbledore wouldn't pay a visit to the Dursleys.

When Harry thought about practicing his Legilimency, he couldn't believe he hadn't thought of it before. Legilimency could be practiced without a wand; though it was much more difficult. Harry knew that from experiencing Dumbledore's and Snape's wandless Legilimency as well as his own previous attempts, which had failed abysmally.

Harry was willing to bet that since he hadn't received a letter for practicing his Occlumency, Legilimency would fall under the same category if done without a wand. So, Harry set to practice against his relatives. It was not long before his attempts yielded some progress, thanks to the might of Harry's will.

After quickly memorizing the feeling his had when using Legilimency, Harry tried his best, at first barely feeling his victims' topmost emotions when he looked into their eyes – generally fear and anger from Vernon, a dull sense of complacency and maliciousness in Dudley, and fear and jealousy from Petunia. The last one confused Harry, so he generally focused on her, trying to find out just what she was jealous of.

As time went on, Harry slowly got better at using the mind arts as his focus developed, and was able to read surface thoughts. It was in that stage that Harry discovered, to his shock, that Petunia was jealous of his mother, Lily, and by proxy her son, Harry, because they had magical ability, and she didn't.

Vernon and Dudley were very simple, easily angered men who hardly bothered to think much except when it came to their own benefit. Even then, Dudley was quite thick in both body and mind. It was Vernon that Harry had to be wary of; he obviously hated Harry with a passion, and as such, Harry read him every once in a while to make sure he had no plans for Harry's demise.

Harry was quite proud of his progress, but on the twenty-seventh of July, he received an owl he hadn't seen before. Unsure of who it was from, he inspected it with his eyes as best he could, and finally saw the Hogwarts seal on the letter. Only slightly relieved, Harry took the letter from the owl, who took off after drinking a bit of Hedwig's water. Hedwig wasn't there to complain, as she was off delivering a letter to Hermione.

Harry opened the letter and read it aloud, his eyes widening in shock. It was in a loopy handwriting that Harry recognized as the same one that sent him the Invisibility Cloak.

_Harry,_

_I have excellent news for you. I understand that the Dursleys aren't exactly the best in their hospitality, so I have been working for some time to find a family to take you in for about half of the summer, starting the day after your birthday. _

_The Weasley family has volunteered to take you in, and they will be picking you up on August first at seven o'clock in the morning. I understand you may have a few troubles with their youngest son, but I have confidence that you can resolve it before term begins again in September. _

_Have a good summer,_

_Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore_

"Sending me to the Weasley's? Well that's not too bad, Fred and George are all right," Harry said slowly. "So Dumbledore's the one who sent me the Cloak…"

"_Can you not see what he is doing?" _Seth asked. _"He is placing you with a family that is no doubt completely under Dumbledore's thumb."_

Harry's eyes widened as he faced his snake, who was lazing in a small patch of sun on the desk. _"You're right,"_ he said in realization. _"He's trying to shape me into being his perfect follower, willing to do whatever he says! Thank you, Seth, for seeing what I could not."_

"_Where would you be without me?" _Seth asked rhetorically before settling himself back down for a snooze.

"Long since dead, my good friend," Harry murmured before sitting down. "Well, now I know what the old coot's planning, and I know it won't affect me in the way Dumbledore wants since I know the truth, but it's going to be tough to act like it is. Fred and George are good blokes, but I still can't afford to tell them the whole truth behind Dumbledore. They trust him too much, and neither knows Occlumency."

He shook his head. _Damn, how come things had to get so complicated? Before, it was nice. Kill a few monsters there, do a mission there, keep in touch with Balamb Garden and I was free to explore as I pleased. That was the good life. Now I'm back here, trying to learn this world's magic while deceiving my manipulative Headmaster and fighting Voldemort on the side. And to top it off, I still don't know where I can put a permanent portal. _

_:You'll find a suitable location soon,: _Quetzalcoatl encouraged his host.

_I hope so, _Harry replied. _It can't be too long, or else the monsters will be let in… _After several moments of grim understanding, Harry went downstairs to inform his relatives of his soon departure.

"How will they be coming?" Vernon grunted.

Harry blinked. Dumbledore hadn't said in the letter. "I'm not sure. They didn't say in the letter."

"Well, they had better not do any of that freakish stuff in my house!"

Harry resisted the urge to rub his temples. But he knew by now that if he wanted to avoid a lengthy rant, he had to say… "Yes, Uncle Vernon." He returned upstairs to do some more reading.

Harry's birthday was completely ignored by the Dursleys, but apparently his friends remembered him, and sent him presents. There was Honeyduke's chocolate from Daphne, a box of sugar-free sweets from Hermione – her parents were dentists, said the note – a book titled _Quidditch Through the Ages _from Theo, and a book listing all the various Quidditch teams around the world with a self-updating list of players. Blaise's note said quite plainly that he did not want to hear another soliloquy from Theo about how the Wimbourne Wasps were the best. Harry had a long chuckle at that.

That night, Harry packed and prepared to go to the Weasley residence. He had already told his new friends at the gym that he was leaving and had one last outing to go bowling. Harry was getting pretty good at it. He fell asleep early that night so he could do his morning run before the Weasleys arrived.

The next morning, Harry woke up early, did his normal morning routine, and was ready in the living room by six forty-five. The Dursleys were the same way, dressed in their best clothes, though Dudley looked particularly fearful; the last time he'd come across a fully-trained wizard, he'd been frozen in place by the man's sheer power and his anger.

At seven o'clock, no one was there. Vernon looked out the window. "They're late!" he growled at Harry, who merely shrugged.

"I hardly even know these people," he admitted freely.

"Then why are they taking you in?" Vernon demanded, greed filling his mind. _Is he paying them? That money should be mine! _

Harry used a mild Legilimency probe and then drew back into his own mind, repulsed by Vernon's motivation. "I haven't the slightest idea."

At quarter past seven, the Weasleys _still _hadn't arrived. Vernon was now pacing the floor. Harry had been considering doing the same thing, but Vernon had gotten up first, and Harry didn't feel like sharing the floor with him.

Five minutes later, there was a great crash from behind the electric fireplace. Harry got to his feet, confused. There was an adult voice, though muffled. "What the…? Oof!"

There was a new voice, one he recognized. "What's going on, Dad?" It was Ron Weasley. "Is Potter's fireplace out of order or something?"

Another crash. "Oh, lookie, a party!" Fred – or George – said with false glee.

"Maybe Harry can hear us," Mr. Weasley said logically. "HARRY!"

Harry walked over to the electric fireplace. "Mr. Weasley?" he asked uncertainly. "Why are you back there? Scratch that, how did you get back there?"

"We took the Floo," the Weasley patriarch answered loudly. "Wizards can travel by fire to another fireplace if it's on the system. I had your house connected to the system just for the day!"

Harry rolled his eyes_. Figures they'd try the magical way to a Muggle house. _"Well, that won't work in this house," Harry explained. "My relatives use an electric fire. They blocked off the old fireplace."

"Can you unblock it?"

Harry glanced at Vernon, who appeared very red-faced. "No, I don't think we can."

"I see," Mr. Weasley said calmly. "Then, yes, that's the only way. Stand back, Harry!"

Harry wisely stepped back several feet, but Vernon stepped forward. "Now see here!"

Too late. "_Reducto!_" Mr. Weasley cried. The fireplace exploded outwards, spraying dust and debris everywhere. Vernon's immaculate black suit was now completely covered, and his mustache and hair were speckled with dust as well, making him look like he aged thirty years in an instant.

Four red-heads stepped out into the once-spotless room. The Weasley twins stepped forward. "Harry!" they greeted, pulling him to one side.

Harry grinned at his rival pranksters. "Fred, George! How are you two doing?"

"Pretty well," Fred answered.

"And yourself?" George questioned.

"Doing ok. How many pranks have you pulled this summer?"

Fred and George looked at each other. "Twenty-seven," they replied with a grin. "How about you? Pull any pranks on these Muggles?" George indicated Petunia and Vernon, who were reddening quickly despite Mr. Weasley's attempts at conversation, with a wave of his hand.

"Nah, we hate each other, but they can make my life hell if they want," Harry answered, his smile faltering. "So I'm bluffing that I can use magic, but I don't want to push them to test that theory." Trying to change the subject, he continued, "So, any ideas on how I'm going to be received by your family?"

"Well, Ron'll be a git as usual," Fred said wryly.

"Charlie's still in Romania with his dragons, so no worries about him," George pointed out.

"Bill's in Egypt doing his curse-breaking," Fred continued.

George frowned. "Percy will probably be stuck-up like normal, so you'll probably get a cold reception from him since you're a Slytherin."

"Dad's heard Ron's perspective and ours, but he said he'll reserve judgment until the end of summer," Fred added.

"Mum'll probably smother you with food," George said with a chuckle. "She really doesn't care too much that you're a Slytherin, since you're still twelve."

Fred grinned. "And that leaves Ginny."

"What about her?" Harry asked, curious.

"You'll see," George said with a grin identical to his twin's.

Before Harry could reply, Mr. Weasley said, "Harry, boys, it's time to go! Ron, you first."

Ron took a pinch of a green powder Mr. Weasley held out and threw it down in the fireplace, where a green fire erupted around him. "The Burrow!" he called out and the green fire rose up and consumed him. Harry raised an eyebrow. Mr. Weasley repeated the process with Fred and George.

"Harry, you're next," Mr. Weasley said, beckoning him over. "I understand you haven't done this before, but it's quite simple, really. Just take a bit of powder, throw it down in a fireplace, and call out your destination. Be sure to enunciate it very clearly, or else you'll get out at the wrong stop."

Harry nodded, not bothering to correct Mr. Weasley's assumption, taking a pinch of the powder and walking to the nearly destroyed fireplace. Suddenly, a hand on his shoulder stopped him. Harry whirled, ready to attack, but saw Mr. Weasley's face just in time. "Aren't you going to say goodbye?" Mr. Weasley asked of Harry's relatives.

Vernon's face purpled. _How dare that freak try to make me say goodbye to the other freak? _But Vernon's eyes went to Mr. Weasley's wand, and he nodded stiffly. "Goodbye."

"Later," Harry said with a nod, turning to the fireplace. He threw the powder down, and was surprised to feel only a gentle heat from the green fire. Some ash tickled his nose, but Harry resisted the urge to sneeze as he called out "The Burrow!"

After a whirlwind experience where Harry saw flashes of several other locations, he was practically launched out of the fireplace, landing on his stomach. Harry, who had not been expecting that, quickly got up. _I should have rolled upon exit, _Harry berated himself. _I'm losing my touch. _

Ron, Fred and George were still laughing at Harry, who rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, laugh at the one who's only Flooed four or five times in his life." The comment only made them laugh harder.

They were just dying down when Mr. Weasley emerged from the fireplace with hardly any dust on him. "You get here ok, Harry?"

The three younger Weasleys started laughing again while Harry glared at them. He tried for the patented Snape glare of death, but it just didn't work on a twelve-year-old face. "Enough boys," Mr. Weasley said sternly. "Harry, welcome to our home."

Harry looked around. It looked and felt like a cozy little cottage. He could smell food cooking in the kitchen, and Harry smiled. _This is the kind of home I'd like to have one day. _

"I know it's not much," Mr. Weasley was saying.

"It's brilliant," Harry interrupted with a smile. The Weasleys beamed, with the exception of Ron, who frowned at Harry's seeming genuine appreciation. Thankfully though, he kept his mouth shut.

"Here, join us for breakfast," Mr. Weasley invited. "You must be hungry."

As a matter of fact, Harry had eaten before the Weasleys had come to fetch him, but he didn't want to turn away what was probably an olive branch from the head of the Weasley family. He smiled again. "Thank you, but I wouldn't want to be a bother…"

"Nonsense, Molly loves feeding kids, and she'll have my head if I don't insist on you joining us," Mr. Weasley said in a joking manner.

"Well, if you insist," Harry conceded, following the Weasleys to the dining room table.

A plump woman was bustling around the kitchen, waving her wand at this and that. "Hello Arthur, Fred, George, Ron." She turned to face Harry and smiled. "And you must be Harry Potter. Welcome to our home. Breakfast will be out in a minute. Will you be joining us?"

"He is," Mr. Weasley said before Harry could answer.

Mrs. Weasley smiled kindly then returned to the kitchen. Only half a minute later, she was setting food down on the table, food that smelled heavenly. "Time to eat!"

At that, there was a redheaded blur rushing down the stairs, but it froze at the sight of Harry Potter sitting at the table. Harry looked up and saw a petite redheaded girl with freckles which were quickly being covered up with an extreme blush. _Why is she blushing? _"I assume you're Ginny?" he asked with a smile.

Ginny's blush deepened as she nodded. _Oh my God, HARRY POTTER is sitting at the table, smiling at me, and I'm wearing nothing but my PAJAMAS! _She cursed herself for not dressing yet as she saw the properly-dressed forms of three of her brothers plus Harry. With a small squeak, she rushed back upstairs to throw on some normal clothes.

Harry blinked and turned to the sniggering forms of Ron and the twins. "What just happened?" he questioned, utterly confused as to Ginny's actions. _Women… I'll never understand them. I'm a warrior, damn it, not a psychologist! _

Ron's amusement abruptly died when he remembered just why he was amused. His sister, despite all his warnings, still had a crush on this _Slytherin_. She was so certain that Harry Potter was not evil. Ron glared at Harry, whose face held a mere hint of confusion.

Harry had been SeeD for long time, and as such he had perfected his poker face, revealing no emotion at all. He only dropped it when around his friends, but he hadn't needed the poker face for quite a while now. Harry had been expected to show emotion at Hogwarts, so he showed bits and pieces here and there to keep Dumbledore off the scent. As a result, his face when dealing with strangers or enemies – namely Ron Weasley and Draco Malfoy – no longer completely lacked emotion. Harry realized this belatedly as he found his facial muscles contracting into a tiny confused frown. _Gonna need to work on that, but why the hell is Weasley glaring at me as if this is my fault? _

Fred and George looked at each other while still sniggering before turning to Harry. "Ginny's got a crush on you."

"A huge one."

"One that's been building ever since Mum first told her a bedtime story about the Boy-Who-Lived."

Harry looked at the twins incredulously. "I'm a bedtime story?"

"You bet," Fred said with a smirk.

"It's all Ginny would ever ask for," George added.

Harry groaned. "Why me?" he asked, looking at the ceiling as if it could give him the answers. _I'm famous as a gunblade-using SeeD on Terra, and I'm famous as the Boy-Who-Lived on Earth. I've got a homicidal dark wizard on the loose trying to kill me, a manipulative Headmaster trying to control me, fame I can't escape thanks to my lightning scar, and fan girls raised to think of me as some great savior. Could this get any worse? _

It appeared as though the god of irony was listening, because he decided to make things worse. A blood-curdling scream echoed from upstairs, and Harry was instantly on his feet along with the Weasleys. "Ginny!" they said together.

Harry was closest to the stairs, and rushed up with the speed of adrenaline. _No fucking way! _Ginny was rushing out of her room, but in there was a spinning purplish wormhole.

Mr. Weasley had been right behind Harry, and gasped. "What the hell is that?" he demanded just as it closed up on itself and collapsed.

_Thank God Odin was right; they only last a few seconds at first. _"I don't know," Harry lied. _I've got to find a place to put a permanent portal, and fast! But where? _"We should check up on Ginny."

Mr. Weasley's eyes widened as he rushed back down, followed slowly by Harry, to see a Ginny in tears being held by her mother. Harry felt a pang of longing, but squashed it as he turned away. _I may have no biological family… but my friends on Terra are my family. _

After a quick glance down the stairs again, Harry lowered his eyes. _This is a private moment, and I am a stranger here. _He turned on his heel and sat in the hallway outside of Ginny's room, closing his eyes while he sat in the Lotus position.

He was interrupted from his meditation only a few moments later. "What are you doing here?" Ron's voice snarled.

Harry opened one eye. "I'm meditating here. Your family is having a private moment downstairs, and I'm fairly certain I would not be welcome. After all, had I a living mother, I'm sure I wouldn't want just any stranger to see me crying into her shoulder, especially at this age. Would you?"

Ron looked taken aback before he quietly whispered "No."

Harry looked Ron straight in the eye with his only open one. "Ginny needs her family right now. She just had the scare of her life, and you're the closest one to her age. Go to her. If you stay up here to fight with me, she may think you've abandoned her."

"I would never abandon her!" Ron argued angrily.

"So go make sure she knows that by being with her in her moment of need."

Ron turned on his heel and ran back downstairs. Harry closed his eye again with a sigh. He knew it was irrational, but he suddenly found that he missed having his own mother and father. _If they had lived, maybe I would have had a brother or sister or two? _Harry thought wistfully. _I never would have lived with the Dursleys, never would have had to do all the chores, and I never would have felt the need to run away. I wouldn't have needed to sacrifice my innocence at so young an age… _Harry opened his eyes again and looked at his hands. _I wouldn't have needed to soak my hands in blood, both of monsters and humans. I wouldn't have started bringing the two dimensions closer, and I wouldn't have to deal with everything by myself. _

_:On the other hand,: _Quetzalcoatl continued, _:if they had lived, Voldemort would still have a body and be wreaking havoc. You would never have met Shugui and Squall and the others, and you almost certainly wouldn't have been prepared for Dumbledore's cruel manipulations. The world would have been a place of terror.:_

Harry let out a long sigh. _Yeah. At least this way we have an opportunity to prepare for Voldemort and the portals. And I have my family, my friends on Terra. _

Even so, Harry couldn't shake the sudden jealousy that erupted towards the Weasley children, for their innocence and their parents.

The rest of the summer passed without incident, though Harry was careful to keep all senses peeled for any portals. He also devoutly read the Daily Prophet, the wizarding newspaper, just in case one appeared elsewhere. So far, things had been quiet, but Harry was uncertain if that was because there hadn't been any portals, or if the Ministry was hushing it up.

The Weasleys had contacted Dumbledore about the strange disturbance in their home, and the Headmaster had come over immediately to inspect it. Hearing that, Harry had prepared a false memory of the event consisting mostly of the facts, but changing a few emotions to make him seem confused.

Dumbledore had completely fooled Mr. Weasley into believing it was a freak incident, caused by Harry's mother's protective magic interacting with the minor wards around the Burrow. Harry had to admit that Dumbledore was very convincing; he would have convinced Harry if he didn't know the truth.

Harry, unfortunately, had no opportunity to train physically during his time with the Weasleys outside of his morning run. "It helps me wake up in the morning," he explained to a concerned Mrs. Weasley the first morning she saw him at it. "Besides, I want to stay in shape for Quidditch."

Thankfully, Harry had plenty of opportunity to test his Legilimency against the seven Weasleys available. Apparently his practice against his relatives and friends had helped immensely, as he was easily able to bypass their natural mental shields to read their emotions and surface thoughts. Harry was gratified to find that the Weasley family minus Ron and Percy thought of him kindly, though Ginny's thoughts centered on Harry. Harry still blushed at the feelings he had sensed in her when she looked at him.

Ron still disliked him immensely, but had the beginnings of respect for him, building since the incident the day he came. Harry's show of humanity – his acknowledgement of someone else's feelings and desire to respect others' privacy – had apparently put a sliver of doubt in Ron's anti-Slytherin bigotry.

Percy was polite but tried to avoid Harry whenever possible. A look into his mind revealed that Percy was unnerved by Harry's presence. Being a responsible bloke, Percy had done his best to avoid all Slytherins and had made several friends in Ravenclaw. His few encounters with the Slytherins had only proven his belief that they were to be avoided at all times. Harry was in Slytherin, and he was residing in Percy's longtime home, causing the prefect to be rather uncomfortable and wary of something happening. Harry reluctantly admitted to himself that he had good reason, and at least Percy was giving him a chance.

August 11th, the Burrow hosted Ginny's birthday party, which Harry took great pleasure in joining. It wasn't often he allowed himself to eat ice cream and cake, but birthdays and holidays were the only exceptions he made. Harry got her a nice necklace, which she stammered and thanked him for.

Then, a week before September first, the Weasleys plus Harry went shopping for their school supplies. Harry noted with a frown that the Defense position had required a complete set of Lockhart's books. _He'll be earning a lot of money this way… _He couldn't help but wonder who the new Defense teacher was.

Those thoughts were abruptly brought to an end when he heard Mrs. Weasley ask her husband how they were going to afford four sets of Lockhart's books. "I mean, Fred and George can share, they always do everything together," Mrs. Weasley was saying quietly away from her children. "But Percy, Ginny and Ron are in different years."

"We'll manage," Mr. Weasley assured her. "I'll have a chance to put in some extra hours and we don't need as much money while the kids are off at Hogwarts."

Harry had completely forgotten about their lack of funds in his stay; the family was so warm and welcoming, it was hard to imagine that they had financial trouble. He immediately felt a little guilty, having so much money here. He surreptitiously fell back from the others until he was walking in stride with the Weasley parents, who had quieted. "You know," he said quietly, "I forgot to get the twins a present this year. They never told me their birthday, though I think it happened in the middle of our prank war."

"April first," Mrs. Weasley answered with a smile.

"April Fool's Day?" Harry asked, stifling a laugh. "Somehow, I think it appropriate. I think I'll go ahead and get them the complete Lockhart set; it should be good for a laugh, since they don't think much of him anyway," Harry said, pretending to think out loud with a chuckle.

Mrs. Weasley huffed. "You haven't read his books! He's done so many marvelous things!"

Harry merely raised an eyebrow at her and shook his head, clearly saying "I'll believe it when I see it."

Harry caught back up with the other Weasleys, making sure to keep a distance from Ron and a smaller one from Ginny. He didn't want to hurt her feelings, but it was a bit uncomfortable having what amounted to a fangirl.

At Gringotts, they visited the Weasley vault first, and Mrs. Weasley scraped up what little there was. Harry felt an ominous sensation as the cart carried him and the others to his vault. He dreaded the reaction that would surely follow when they saw the riches in his vault.

Griphook announced Harry's vault, and when it opened, Harry did his best to quickly scoop a pile of Galleons, Sickles and Knuts into his Item Bag. He reentered the cart and waited for the inevitable tantrum Ron would have.

"Blimey, Harry," was all Fred said.

"Is that?"

"Yeah," Harry said with a sigh. "My inheritance. What else could it be?" he added with a note of sarcasm.

"Hey, you don't need to bite our heads off!" Fred protested.

Harry sighed again. "Sorry, sore subject. I just don't like the idea that I got rich because my parents died." _I'd rather have earned my riches, like I did on Terra. _

That instantly killed the conversation. Even Ron, who had opened his mouth – no doubt to bad-mouth Harry – shut it. No one knew what to say next as they left Gringotts… that is, until they met up with Hermione and her parents.

"Harry!" Hermione called out.

"Hermione! How you doing?" Harry asked. "Have you kept up with your exercises?"

"I'm doing ok and yes," Hermione answered. "I hope you've finished your homework?"

Harry laughed. _Same old Hermione. _"Of course, I finished it in the first week I arrived at the Dursleys!"

"Good," Hermione said in satisfaction. "Have you read the book list? We'll be getting an entire set of Gilderoy Lockhart's books! And he's doing a complimentary book-signing at Flourish and Blott's!"

Harry rolled his eyes. It sounded as though Lockhart reveled in his fame, and that lowered him a few notches in Harry's opinion. Nevertheless, Harry and the others headed towards the book shop.

Mr. and Mrs. Granger pulled Harry aside about half-way there. "Harry, I understand you're responsible for getting our daughter to start exercising?" Harry nodded. "What I want to know is why."

Harry remembered the answer he had thought up for just this situation. "Not many wizards or witches keep in shape, so doing the exercises give her an advantage over everyone else, especially while dueling. Besides, it'll also allow her to defend herself if she loses her wand."

The Grangers looked at each other and nodded. "Ok," Mr. Granger said. "Between you and me, I'm glad you managed to get her out of her shell. I was getting worried that she would seclude herself from everything."

Harry smiled. "Yeah, well, she did most of the work. Not many Gryffindors are willing to give a Slytherin a chance. She's a wonderful person."

Hermione's parents beamed before waving Harry off to go buy his school supplies. When they reached the store, Harry looked around nervously; he had always hated being the center of a crowd's attention when not in a combat situation – he had little idea how to act, and constantly felt judged. The situation before him was the embodiment of that fear; the crowd inside Flourish and Blott's was huge, leading all the way to the back of the store. Harry's companions went inside immediately, but Harry hesitated before summoning his courage, taking a deep breath, and walking in.

At first, it wasn't so bad. Harry and the others each grabbed a copy of _The Standard Book of Spell, Grade 2_ and met up with the Weasley and Granger parents, who were waiting in line to meet Lockhart. "Oh, there you are, good," said Mrs. Weasley. She sounded breathless and kept patting her hair. Harry kept himself from snorting – barely – at her attitude. _It's not like meeting this guy is what you really wanted in life, right? _Harry thought to himself. "We'll be able to see him in a minute…" Mrs. Weasley continued anxiously.

Gilderoy Lockhart came slowly into view, and was apparently seated at a table. Surrounding him were large pictures of his own face, all winking and flashing dazzlingly white teeth at the crowd. Harry scowled. _He looks absolutely full of himself._

"He looks absolutely full of himself," Ron whispered, and Harry whirled on him, shocked. "I mean, who would keep pictures of himself around him?"

"For once Weasley, we agree," Harry agreed reluctantly. "Makes you think he's trying to make up for something, don't you think?"

Despite himself, Ron laughed, quickly joined by the males in the nearby vicinity. The females all gave them withering looks, but not before Lockhart heard the commotion. He looked up, and saw the Weasleys – and then Harry. He stared for a moment. Then he leapt to his feet and shouted, "It _can't _be Harry Potter!"

Harry groaned. _Just my luck. The one time I try to be humorous, I end up attracting the attention of what looks to be someone addicted to fame. _The crowd parted, whispering excitedly, covering Harry's groan; Lockhart leapt forward and seized Harry's wrist, trying to pull him up front.

Harry's combat instincts took over and he immediately yanked back hard with the arm being held by Lockhart, lashing out with his other palm and slamming it into the egotist's chest. "Yah!"

Lockhart went flying back, releasing his grip on Harry's wrist. He crashed back into the wall, and slumped down, apparently unconscious. Harry had the sudden feeling of impending doom, and the source was… all around him! Harry very slowly turned around and felt the killing intent of every single female in the room.

_:I believe this is the situation that calls for the phrase "Oh shit.": _Quetzalcoatl remarked dryly.

Harry rubbed the back of his head, appearing sheepish. "Er… it was instinct?" he explained, more asking than stating. He swallowed hard. "I just don't like being grabbed," he added, now sounding a little more confident.

There was no response from the women, but the killing intent died down considerably, considering that most of them were mothers and could understand Harry's reaction. The fact that he was the Boy-Who-Lived helped immensely as well.

"Shouldn't someone _Enervate _him?" someone asked.

Seconds later, Lockhart was awakened. He shook his head and walked up to Harry, this time with some more caution. He extended a hand to shake, and Harry reluctantly shook it, trying to get it over with. He saw the photographer nearby clicking away madly, creating a thick purple smoke over the crowd.

"Nice big smile, Harry. Together, you and I are worth the front page," Lockhart said through his blindingly white teeth. After about half a minute, he let go of Harry, who was about ready to kill. Being the center of attention, something he absolutely hated being, was driving him to the point where he was ready to annihilate anything in his path to just get out of the damn bookstore, including Lockhart, no, especially Lockhart for putting him in this position.

Harry almost dove back into the crowd, but he was restrained at the last moment by Lockhart. He suppressed his impulse to just bring out a Thundaga spell, and just barely kept himself from throwing Lockhart over his shoulder into the streets. He was pretty sure the women wouldn't like that.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Lockhart said loudly, waving for quiet. "What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time!

"When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography – which I shall be happy to present him now, free of charge –" The crowd applauded again, not noticing Harry's left eyebrow beginning to twitch. Hermione, however, spotted it and recognized the danger sign.

"Stay back, he's gonna blow!" Hermione hissed at the Weasleys.

"Who's gonna blow?" Ron asked.

"Harry! See that eyebrow twitching?" Ron did indeed. "That's the only sign Harry lets out before his anger expresses itself somehow."

"He had _no idea_," Lockhart continued, "that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, _Magical Me. _He and his schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the real magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"

_Please, please let me kill him? _Harry pleaded inside his head. _I've got all the energy necessary for a Limit Break and everything! Please?! I need to get out of this place! _

_:No, Harry,: _Quetzalcoatl said soothingly as Harry almost mechanically took the books presented to him. _:If you kill him, you'll just become more famous, and then more people will try to control you.:_

_Can I maim him then? _

_:No, you'll just attract attention.:_

_How about putting his butt on fire? I won't let anyone catch me, I promise! _

_:I'm afraid not. You're not allowed to use magic outside of Hogwarts.:_

_What about when we get to Hogwarts? He just said he's a teacher there this year._

A pause. _:I see no problems with that.:_

Harry instantly started plotting mentally as he went outside, letting loose a cackle that Fred and George – who had followed Harry – were more than a little disturbed by.

"Um, Harry, are you ok?"

Harry turned to face them with a mischievous grin. "Fred, George! Just the people I wanted to see. What do you say to a partnership this year, with the main focus on one target?"

"Which one?" the twins responded together.

"Lockhart."

The twins grinned. "Deal!"

His anger now mollified with the promise of later retaliation, Harry turned his mind to other things. "Oh, I almost forgot." Harry dumped his books into the arms of the twins. "Missed your birthday, so I thought I'd get you something we could laugh over later. After all, none of us actually care much for the attention-seeking git, do we? And what do you know, Lockhart's books turned out to be on the school book list. Who knows, maybe you'll find some potential pranks in there too."

At the last sentence, Fred and George accepted the books immediately. "Bet you loved that, didn't you, Potter?" said a voice that Harry recognized instantly. He turned around and found himself facing Draco Malfoy, who was wearing his usual sneer. "_Famous _Harry Potter. Can't even go into a _bookshop _without making the front page."

Ron, on his way back when he heard Malfoy's comments, stopped, wanting to hear Potter's response. Ginny looked all set to answer, but Harry silenced her with a gesture. "In case your brain has had a hard time connecting the clues, let me lay it out for you," Harry said quietly, yet forcefully. "I hate my fame. I hate people who try to take advantage of their fame. I hate people who judge someone they haven't even met just because of their fame. And that's exactly what happened in there just now. Lockhart took advantage of my being there to boost his own ego and fame. He's even made it a requirement for Hogwarts students to have a set of his books, which will quite likely make him a hefty profit. And at the same time, he forced me into the spotlight, where I was immediately judged by whoever was in there. In total, I absolutely _loathed _the entire experience. And you know what? I'm still very angry over the ordeal. So if you want to keep your limbs intact, I'd recommend you walk away, right now."

It was quite possibly the longest speech Harry had ever made. Malfoy's jaw dropped; he hadn't heard Potter say as much to him in all of Hogwarts term as he did just now. Ron was just as shocked, and what's more, he heard the ring of truth in Harry's words. He mentally searched for something, anything in his interactions with him that would prove that Potter's words were false… yet once he looked at it all objectively, like he would a chess game, Harry Potter seemed to be a decent guy. Sure, he had trash-talked Ron before, but in this rare moment of objectivity, he realized that maybe he had deserved those tongue-lashings. Ron had never really given Harry a chance after he had showed a more open mind than Ron towards Slytherin house. Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors were supposed to be the more accepting ones…

Ron suddenly remembered the Sorting Hat's words as it sorted Harry Potter: _"I'll have you know, Draco Malfoy, that this one would have had the Four Founders themselves squabbling over who would get him! You would do well to learn a few things from Mr. Potter here!"_ _Maybe, just maybe, he's not all bad. After all, if Godric Gryffindor himself would have wanted him, then who am I, a member of his house, to drive him away? _

Ron still didn't trust Harry, but he wouldn't try to purposely create conflicts between them either, not anymore. Just as he made this resolution, his dad came up from behind him. "Come on, Ron, let's go."

They met up with Harry, but as they did, an older-looking version of Draco Malfoy came out from behind a corner, placing his hand on Draco's shoulder, sneering in just the same way. "Well, well, well – Arthur Weasley."

"Lucius," acknowledged Mr. Weasley, nodding coldly.

"Busy time at the Ministry, I hear. All those raids… I hope they're paying you overtime?"

He reached into Ginny's cauldron and took out from the glossy Lockhart books Mr. Weasley had just put in, a very old, battered copy of _A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration. _"Obviously not," Mr. Malfoy said distastefully. "Dear me, what's the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?"

Mr. Weasley flushed, but Harry beat him to the punch. "And yet Mr. Weasley is still a more respected contributing member of society than you," Harry retorted. "He works hard in his job, making an honest living, while you merely throw your inherited money around to get what you want. I bet you've never worked a day in your life. If he's a disgrace to the name of wizard, what does that make you?"

Mr. Malfoy scowled and turned to face the new speaker. "Harry Potter. You would do well not to insult your betters."

"The same could apply to you," Harry replied coldly, not liking this character at all. "You may have money, but do you honestly think you have the support of the public? You, who people still suspect of being a Death Eater despite your plea of Imperius Curse?" He remembered that small detail from his friends' occasional ranting about the Malfoy family. "Never underestimate the power of the masses. I may hate my fame, but it has its uses."

"You're walking a dangerous path, boy," Mr. Malfoy hissed.

"Perhaps, but it is the path of my choosing. I let no one dictate my fate. Do you?"

Malfoy Sr. inexplicably clutched his left forearm even as he locked eyes with the Potter heir. He turned to Ginny's cauldron and dropped her transfiguration book inside. With that, he beckoned to Draco and swept from the shop.

"That. Was. Awesome!" a voice Harry recognized cried out. Turning around, he met the eyes of Theo, Daphne and Blaise. Theo was the one who had shouted.

"Hey guys!" Harry greeted. After a brief round of introductions, Harry's group of friends immediately began chatting to see how their summers went. Harry did a light scan of Legilimency to make sure their false personas were still up and in careful words let them know he was glad their shields were up. He had to be cautious of not letting slip the fact that they were still practicing Occlumency. After all, he could trust no one to keep it secret.

"So, what's with Weasley?" Daphne asked bluntly, jerking her thumb over in Ron's direction. "Normally he'd have at least insulted us by now."

Harry had been wondering the same thing. "Let's not question a good thing, shall we?" he reasoned.

Unfortunately, Theo hadn't been listening. "Hey, Weasley! Why aren't you bugging us?"

Ron gave him a half-hearted glare. "I don't see the point. As long as I don't have to associate with you or any other friends of Potter's, I don't care what you do."

Harry smiled softly to himself before quickly covering it up. _He's maturing, if only a little. _He and his friends spent some more time chatting idly while eating some ice cream at Fortescue's before they had to go home.

Finally, September first arrived. Harry was tapping his foot impatiently as the Weasleys ransacked the house for one thing or another. He had been packed for the last couple of nights, and the delay to the platform was irritating him. When they eventually made it to the train station, it was almost eleven o'clock, the departure time for the train.

"Two at a time, boys," Mrs. Weasley said hurriedly. Percy grabbed Ginny and got her through first, with the Weasley twins following directly after. The Weasley parents went through next, and without a word, Harry and Ron looked at each other.

Ron glared at Harry, which the Boy-Who-Lived translated as "I don't like you."

Harry rolled his eyes and jerked his head at the entrance to the Platform, saying quite plainly "I don't like you either, but this is more important."

Ron sighed and nodded, silently communicating his agreement. They then ran through the barrier and quickly got on the train, not looking at each other.

Author's Note: Remember that Dobby realized that Harry was hiding his true power, and just told him to be careful. He's not going to try to sabotage Harry… much.

Once the train started, Harry explained to his friends his plan to completely humiliate Lockhart this year, and half of his audience seemed to like it. Unfortunately, the other half – the female half – were now glaring holes through him. "Hey, I'm justified," Harry defended himself. "Didn't you see what he did to me in Flourish and Blotts? And can't you see that he's abusing his position by making his students buy a completed set of his works? He didn't even differentiate between the years!"

"You must admit Harry brings up a valid point," Blaise said calmly.

"Give him a chance!" Hermione pleaded. "He's done so much, he probably has loads to teach us from his books!"

"He's Gilderoy Lockhart, for crying out loud!" Daphne said with a subtle note of enthusiasm.

The three males of the group exchanged looks. Despite their vastly different personalities, there were some things they had shared the same opinion on, and Lockhart was one of them. They also knew full well that if they didn't agree, living with Hermione and Daphne would be very difficult. They just _knew _they were going to regret this, but if they wanted to keep life as simple as possible, they had to agree. "Fine," Harry answered for all of them. "We'll give him two weeks."

Hermione and Daphne shared a smirk. Harry hid a mischievously evil smirk of his own. _Just because WE agreed to leave him alone doesn't mean I can't convince the Weasley Twins to prank Lockhart._

_:You truly do deserve to be a Slytherin,: _Quetzalcoatl commented.

_Why thank you. _Harry's thoughts were interrupted by the unexpected entrance of Draco Malfoy with his two goons. "What do you want?"

Draco appeared to be forcing himself to be calm. "Potter, I offer you one last chance: cast off your friends and join me in heading Slytherin. No one outside of Slytherin will truly accept you; surely you've noticed that by now. Join me, and I will show you the true way to power."

Harry sighed and shook his head. "Draco, you're getting better at the persuasion aspect, I'll give you that, but you need to accept that I am unwilling to just toss away my friends to join some twelve-year-old who was no doubt ordered by his father to gain the influence of the Boy-Who-Lived." Draco flushed with narrowed eyes, confirming Harry's suspicions. "As I said before, I let no one control me."

"Then I'll have to force you!" Draco concluded. "Crabbe! Goyle! Attack Potter's friends!"

Harry merely smiled. Crabbe had had the misfortune of choosing Daphne, who was merciless in her counterattack. A hard kick to the weak point of all men had Crabbe doubled over in pain before Daphne tripped him and placed her foot in the perfect position to put pressure on Crabbe's injury. Goyle, on the other hand, had chosen Blaise, charging at him. Blaise waited until the last moment and then grabbed the bulky brute's arm, spinning around in a circle to use Goyle's own momentum against him. When Blaise let go, Goyle slammed his head directly into a wall, where he crumpled.

Draco looked at his minions angrily. "What's the point of being wizards if you're not going to use magic?" he demanded. He whipped out his wand, only to find five pointing directly at him.

"Back off, Malfoy," Harry growled. "And stay out of our way this year."

Malfoy scowled and lowered his wand. Harry nodded at Daphne, who looked at the sweating figure of Crabbe. She pointed her wand at him as she stepped off of Crabbe. "_Wingardium Leviosa_." She levitated Crabbe over to Malfoy.

"Grab Goyle," Malfoy ordered. "We're leaving." Crabbe grunted and hefted his partner onto his shoulders and followed Malfoy out of the compartment.

"Well, now that Malfoy's out of the picture, who's up for some Exploding Snap?" Theo asked.

Dumbledore, in the meantime, was pondering his favorite subject: what to do with Harry Potter. The Weasley parents had stopped by only an hour ago as he had requested and Dumbledore wasted no time looking through their memories. He was quite pleased to view the event in Diagon Alley where Harry defended the Weasleys against the Malfoys. _It seems as though the plan has worked; Harry is now enamored with the Weasley family. And thankfully, the youngest male Weasley appears to have stopped trying to cause fights with Harry. Now they can work together and I can, through the Weasleys, mold Harry into the complacent warrior I need. _

_Perhaps I should arrange for Harry and Ginny Weasley to get together? As a Weasley, she's sure to be a Gryffindor, and surely Harry would be more responsive to anything his girlfriend says. I can easily take care of any objections her parents may have. He's rich, he's loyal, and he'll be in love with her if I have to dose him with a Love Potion to do it! He's still a little young for that, though, so I'll wait until his fourth year._

Not long later, at the Opening Feast... _Hmm, the Sorting Hat sings something different every year, _Harry noticed as the hat finished singing.

_:Well, it must be rather bored, just staying up in Dumbledore's office all year.: _

_True. _Harry didn't pay much attention to the Sorting except when it reached a name he recognized. "Weasley, Ginevra!"

Harry watched attentively as Ginny quickly made her way to the Sorting Hat and put it on, but not before sneaking a glance at Harry. The seconds slowly passed, and everyone in the hall was getting confused, especially Ginny's brothers. She was a Weasley, wasn't she? All her family was in Gryffindor, so surely she'd follow, right?

After almost a minute, the Sorting Hat opened its brim-like a mouth to announce her house. "SLYTHERIN!" it declared.

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Heh heh, don't kill me? Surely you may have noticed in the books that Ginny is just as mischievious as the twins, and much more cunning then them to keep out of trouble for it. My thoughts are, her cunning and bravery were about equal, thus leading to the conflict in the Sorting Hat. In canon, Ginny went to Gryffindor, and - hey, would you look at that - to her family and Harry. Since Harry, her crush, is in Slytherin, it kind of balanced it out between her desire to be with Harry and her desire to stay with her family.

Read and Review, please!


	2. Looks can be decieving

Yo, sorry for taking so long to update today! Been kinda busy with college homework and all that. sigh At least I got it up! Oh, and happy birthday, "i like pineapples"!

By the way, this will most definitely NOT be Harry/Ginny. Dunno if I've said it before or no... I admit, I do like reading Harry/Ginny and Harry/Hermione fics... when they're written properly. I don't much care for the fics that just throw them together. Harry in my story is either gonna be with NO ONE, or maybe with Tonks... still deciding on that one.

Disclaimer: I JUST admitted that Harry's not gonna end up with Ginny. Thus, it's not canon. Thus, I am not J.K. Rowling. Thus, I am making no money.

"Normal Speech"

_Thoughts_

_:Projected Thoughts/Legilimency:_

_"Parseltongue"_

Chapter Two: Looks can be deceiving…

The cry of "SLYTHERIN" echoed through the suddenly silent Great Hall. Almost looking like she was about to cry, Ginny slowly rose from the stool, gave the hat to the dumbfounded figure of McGonagall, and shuffled over to the Slytherin table, where Harry immediately got up and helped her into a seat before sitting down next to her.

Without further ado, Ginny started quietly sobbing into Harry's robes, and he held her close, trying to comfort her. At the same time, Harry quickly glanced around the hall. Most everyone was still in a state of shock from the unexpected Sorting, though Dumbledore was looking at Ginny with a strange look in his eye. Fred and George looked pretty surprised, but it was Ron whose face said it all. The youngest Weasley male wore a face of pure betrayal.

To be honest, Harry was pretty surprised as well. He knew first-hand that the Sorting Hat took into account the feelings and former actions of the people under its brim before Sorting them, and Ginny had shown herself to be brave and outgoing – when she didn't think Harry was looking – and she was obviously loyal to her family. He had expected her to be a Gryffindor like the rest of her family.

And yet she had become a Slytherin. _Why? _After a moment's contemplation, Harry knew that he wouldn't know the answer to that question until he got to know Ginny better or if she told him personally what the Sorting Hat told her.

McGonagall recovered her composure after a several moments and resumed Sorting the rest of the students, of which there were few. The feast began shortly after with a small speech from Dumbledore that Harry completely ignored.

"C'mon, you've got to eat something," Harry coaxed Ginny, who was now clutching onto his arm and shoulder as if Harry was a sturdy rock in the middle of a monsoon.

Ginny reluctantly relaxed her grip on Harry and slowly served herself some food. Harry did the same, watching her out of the corner of his eye. He was beginning to be a little worried about her. She was obviously not taking the prospect of being a Slytherin well. In hindsight, Harry felt that he might have had something to do with that. Ginny and her brothers had been completely anti-Slytherin until Harry had started to prove that Slytherin did not mean evil. Looking back, Harry knew that the time he had spent with the Weasley family had started changing some perspectives.

Harry suppressed the sigh that wanted to escape. He knew that Ron, at the very least, would confront him sooner or later claiming that he had enchanted her or some such thing. Fred and George would be reasonable, Harry supposed, but Percy and Ron would be very difficult to deal with. The question was which was stronger: their anti-Slytherin tendencies, or their love for their sister?

_That's the million-Galleon question, isn't it? _Harry mused as he ate.

_:Do not forget that you must find a suitable location to place a permanent portal soon,: _Quetzalcoatl reminded him.

_Yeah. I just hope we don't have to deal with any Voldemort attacks this year. It'll be hard enough to evade Dumbledore's watchful eye. _

_:Agreed.:_

After the feast, Harry and his friends watched as the first year Slytherins were guided to the Slytherin common room by the fifth year prefects. When the rest of the hall was dismissed, Harry followed his friends into the hall, where he immediately encountered a very angry Ronald Weasley. "Potter! And I was just beginning to respect you! I should have known that you would sink so low as to enchant my sister to become a Slytherin!"

"Weasley, surely you don't think I'm so proficient in mind-manipulation charms that I can fool the Sorting Hat, which was enchanted by Godric Gryffindor himself, do you?" Harry asked wryly. "Trust me; I was just as surprised as you were when she became a Slytherin."

"Sure didn't look like it!" Ron retorted. "I saw you over there, holding her and whispering to her!"

"I was _soothing _her, Weasley," Harry explained, exasperated. "She was a little hysterical at the moment, if you didn't notice. Didn't you see her as she walked away from the Sorting Hat? She was crying into my shoulder, damn it!" Harry turned sideways so the tear-stains on his robes were clearly evident. "As for the reason I appeared so calm, that's because that's what she needed. You remember what happened that first day I was at your house?"

Ron was confused by the sudden change in subject. "Yeah. What about it?"

"It's the exact situation again. Ginny's terrified, except this time she's scared of being rejected by her family for being a Slytherin. You're here blaming me when you should be soothing her and reassuring her that the ties of blood are stronger than some stupid rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin."

Ron, Harry could see, was just dying to argue about the rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin. But apparently the rest of Harry's speech had broken through to him, and his argumentative spirit died down. "You swear you didn't force Ginny to be a Slytherin?" Ron asked, as though to verify.

Harry nodded. "I swear it."

Ron took a deep breath. "OK. I believe you, but remember: Ginny has six brothers, four of which are at Hogwarts. We'll be watching you."

"Whatever. Now, since you're not allowed in the Slytherin common room, I'm going to go see what I can do for Ginny." Harry turned on his heel and hurried to his common room.

After glancing around the common room to see if she was outside of her dorm, Harry turned to the corridor that led to the girls' dorms. He made as if to enter, but suddenly he found himself flying backwards through the air. He saw the stones around the door and several of the ones in the corridor giving off a dimming green glow.

_Hmm, interesting. There's a ward that knocks me back… I bet it's discriminates against male non-teachers. _

_:Can you use your Metamorphmagus powers to make yourself female?:_

Harry stood up and brushed himself off, ignoring the raised eyebrows sent his way. _Maybe. If I recall correctly, when I scanned myself it mentioned cross-gender transformations as a possibility. But I can't do it in public, so I'll just wait for Ginny to come out. I can only hope the other girls won't be too mean… _

"You ok?" Theo interrupted, rushing over to see how Harry was doing. "I suppose no one told you that guys aren't allowed in the girls' dorms?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. A little surprised is all," Harry reassured his friend. _At least Malfoy and his gang can't bother her, with the exceptions of Millicent Bulstrode and Pansy Parkinson. But would they? _He voiced his concerns to Theo.

"She should be fine," Theo assured Harry. "Those two hardly do anything unless Malfoy tells them to. And if all else fails, you do what you did last year when Malfoy cursed Hermione."

"True," Harry acknowledged, "but I don't want to have to keep doing that. If I do, the threat starts losing its power."

"Don't forget that Daphne's there too," Theo reminded Harry. "She'll keep them in line."

Harry relaxed. "Yeah, you're right," he admitted.

"Why are you getting so worked up about Ginny anyway?" Theo asked.

"She's from a family called blood traitors," Harry answered calmly. "I want to make sure that her Hogwarts experience won't be ruined simply because she was sorted here into Slytherin, where several value the quality of blood."

Malfoy, who happened to be walking by, heard him and sneered. "How… _noble _of you. Always knew you should have been a Gryffindor."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Do you need your ears to be cleaned, or are you just that stupid? The hat said I had qualities of all four houses, did it not? Merlin, if you got any stupider you'd be joining Crabbe and Goyle in figuring out who wins at rock-paper-scissors."

Malfoy flushed and stalked off, his nose high in the air. Harry briefly considered shooting a small Fire spell out of his finger like a gun to hit the offending nostril, but decided against it. _How do you like your nose, medium rare or well done? _

Quetzalcoatl chuckled. _:I prefer mine electrified, but I'll take what I can get.: _

Harry had to restrain himself from laughing out loud as he shook his head and went to bed.

The next day, Harry got up early as was his custom and was pleasantly surprised to find that his friends were up as well. He had half-expected them to have gotten used to sleeping late over the summer break. Harry led them through their morning exercises, and found that he had weakened some over the summer due to the lack of nutritious food – Petunia had made certain to serve Harry very little, and Harry didn't want to push his luck.

After everyone was tired, they all returned to Slytherin – Gryffindor for Hermione – for a shower. No one wanted to be stinky throughout their day of classes, after all. In the shower, Quetzalcoatl decided to remind Harry of an issue they'd decided on a month and a half ago. _:Do not forget you need to find a spell to enchant your clothes with more weight. Your speed has deteriorated to half of what it used to be due to the lack of speed training over the last year.:_

Harry's face was grim as he processed that information. _That puts me at still faster than normal people, but not by much. It's going to take me a while to get back up to what I used to be at, but it needs to be done. How's my magic core adjusting to this world's type of spells? _

_:Being unable to do any magic of the summer was a blessing in disguise for that,: _Quetzalcoatl reported. _:It gave the core a chance to rest and to acclimate a bit. You should find spells to be a little easier to cast.:_

_Good, _Harry replied as he stepped out of the shower and dried himself off before getting dressed. He went to the common room and found Ginny just starting to walk out. "Hey, Ginny!"

Ginny turned around, and Harry noticed that she looked particularly anxious, and not in a good way. "Hey Harry."

"Wanna walk with me to get some breakfast?"

"…Sure."

They walked in silence for a minute, but eventually Harry decided to speak. "You're looking pretty nervous. What's got you worried?"

Ginny just couldn't seem to devote the energy to being excited that _the_ Harry Potter was talking to her. She sighed. "My family. I, I just don't know how they're going to take it."

"Take what, the fact that you're a Slytherin now?" Harry asked. _Well, at least she's not too embarrassed to talk to me. Hope it lasts. _

"Yeah. All my family's been in Gryffindor for generations," Ginny explained. "What if they don't want to spend any time with me anymore? Are the friends I made when I was younger going to stop being my friends?"

"If they were true friends to begin with, something as simple as this won't break you guys up," Harry stated firmly. "True, it might be a hurdle for a while, but they'll get over it. But you said that you were worried about how your family was going to take it, not your friends," Harry said, gently steering the conversation back to the root. "You're scared that you'll lose the relationship you've built with your brothers, aren't you?"

Ginny nodded miserably. "They're all in Gryffindor, and I'm a Slytherin! I'm not going to be able to spend any time with them anymore, especially since we're in different years! And what if they decide that I'm not worth it anymore?" Tears were brimming in her eyes by the time she finished.

"Hey, hey, don't talk like that!" Harry said quickly. "I'm a Slytherin, aren't I? Fred and George are just fine around me. They may be a bit surprised, but you'll always be their sister to them. Heck, they'll probably ask you to pull off a few pranks for them."

Ginny sniffled a little, though a smile tugged on her lips. "Yeah, that's them all right."

"As for the rest of your brothers… I don't know Charlie or Bill, but I'm sure they'll still love you like always. Percy may be a bit uncomfortable for a while, but he'll turn back into his rule-loving, slightly-snobby self in no time," Harry assured her.

"And Ron?" Ginny asked, her tears drying up.

Harry hesitated, not quite sure of what the volatile twelve-year-old would do. Sure, he had calmed him down for the moment, but who knew when that would change. "Ron'll be the same old annoying brother you've always had after he gets over his shock." _There, that should cheer her up without promising anything. _

Indeed, Ginny had stopped crying and was now smiling hopefully at Harry. "You really think so?"

There was truly only one thing Harry had to say to that. "I know so."

Inside, Quetzalcoatl was contemplating Harry's slow change in behavior. _While Harry was treated as an adult on Terra, he acted like an overly-mature one, but now that he's being forced into playing the role of a child again, he has the opportunity for a peaceful childhood – well, as peaceful as it can be, given that he has to avoid being manipulated or killed and that he has to create at least one permanent portal in a hidden place to keep chaos from emerging throughout the world in the form of incredible monsters… ok, so maybe it's not very peaceful, but it's better than on Terra! _

Harry and Ginny paused outside the door to the Great Hall for breakfast as Ginny took a deep, steadying breath. "It might be wise for us to go in separately," Harry murmured. "Ron was a bit aggressive yesterday and thought I had tricked the hat or something into sorting you into Slytherin. If we go in together, he'll probably think his concerns are justified."

Ginny nodded slowly. "But you'll sit with me, right?"

"Of course, unless you want to sit with your year," Harry said. "Personally, I'd recommend scoping out the students in your year and seeing if any of them are worth trying to befriend. Things can get a bit lonely without a friend in your year, but it's up to you where you sit."

Ginny closed her eyes and made up her mind. "Alright, I'll sit with the Slytherins in my year, at least for a while," she asserted firmly.

Harry smiled; it was good to see Ginny already recovering her usual boisterous self. "Hey, and if that doesn't work, there's no rule stopping you from sitting at the Gryffindor table with your brothers. I've already got Hermione sitting at the Slytherin table, so it shouldn't be much of a stretch."

Ginny looked surprised for a moment, but she was beaming when she recovered, obviously happy to have such an option. She looked up at Harry and suddenly blushed before rushing into the hall. _Aw, man! _Harry moaned mentally. _She was doing so well! Why did she have to suddenly remember her crush on me? _

Quetzalcoatl was chuckling. _:Well, you just boosted her spirits from completely depressed to joy, and you actually took the time to talk to her. Of course she was bound to remember her crush if you act like that!:_

_So you're saying that in order to get rid of her crush, I have to act mean and completely ignore her? _Harry asked skeptically.

_:Actually, that could backfire. Some girls like the "bad boy" type,: _Quetzalcoatl admitted, and when the GF sensed Harry's utter exasperation and confusion, he started laughing.

After several seconds of listening to Quetzalcoatl's laughter, Harry sighed and went inside to serve himself some breakfast. He was gratified to see that Ginny was indeed sitting next to the Slytherins in her year, even if she didn't look all that enthused, so Harry turned his attention to the Weasley brothers. When Harry's eyes met those of the Weasley Twins, Fred and George gave a slight nod and looked pointedly at their sister. To Harry, that meant "Hey, we don't hate you, but we can't exactly greet you from over here at Gryffindor table. Keep an eye on our sister, will ya?"

Harry replied with a nod before locking eyes with Ron, who was staring at him as if waiting for Harry to do something that would incriminate him. Harry shook his head and rolled his eyes before spotting Percy, who was pointedly ignoring his existence. _Well, at least none of them outright hate me…_

Snape came soon after Harry's friends arrived at the Great Hall, and passed out the schedules. Harry quickly looked through his and memorized it.

The classes up to Defense were essentially what Harry expected, seeing as only the Defense teacher had been replaced and Harry had studied ahead. In Herbology with the Ravenclaws, Harry's time was spent repotting Mandrakes, a plant with potion properties that Harry found interesting. Apparently the prime use of Mandrakes was in a potion to dispel petrification, much like Harry's Soft potions from Terra.

Curious, Harry decided to ask Professor Sprout after class if there was a spell for that purpose. "Professor Sprout, I read that the Mandrakes are used in the Mandragora Potion for unpetrifying people. Is there a spell that does the same thing?"

Professor Sprout shook her head. "Many have tried, but there just isn't a spell that can efficiently unpetrify people."

_I see. Does that mean they just haven't developed a spell for it, or is Earth's petrification different from Terra's? _"It takes a long time for Mandrakes to fully mature," Harry commented. "That must make the Mandragora Potion a little hard to come by."

"Indeed it does, especially as the potion spoils after a lunar month," Professor Sprout agreed. "Thankfully, there are precious few ways to turn people to stone, so it's not much in demand."

Harry was a little surprised at this revelation; being petrified was a pretty common occurrence among SeeD who weren't immune, which was why most SeeD worked in teams of three. The extra people could bring them back using Dispel or a Soft potion. _I wonder how similar the Soft potion is compared to the Mandragora Potion? _

Harry banished those thoughts with a shrug as he returned to the castle. _I don't really need to know. If there're so few ways for people to turn to stone here, then there's not much point in wondering, and Dispel should work anyway. _

Finally, it was time for Defense Against the Dark Arts, a class that would etch its memory into Harry's brain forever. _I wonder why Slytherin and Gryffindor are paired up so often? _Harry wondered idly as he entered the class with his friends. Looking back at the schedule, Slytherin and Gryffindor shared the same Defense, Potions and Transfiguration classes. They had Charms and Astronomy with the Hufflepuffs, and Herbology and History of Magic with the Ravenclaws. However, Defense, Potions, Transfiguration and Charms were classes that took place two or three times a week, whereas the others took place fewer times. For instance, Herbology was taken Tuesday mornings and Thursday evenings, but it rarely had any homework. Astronomy took place on Friday nights.

Harry's thoughts were interrupted as the bell rang and Lockhart strode into the room with a fanciful flourish wearing a large smile. Picking up a copy of _Travels with Trolls _from a random student – Neville – Lockhart held it up by his face to show his own winking portrait on the front. _Oh sweet Merlin, can he get any more full of himself? _Harry asked unbelievingly.

_:At this point, I'm not certain.:_

"I am Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of _Witch Weekly's _Most-Charming-Smile Award – but I don't talk about that. I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by _smiling _at her!"

Harry sweat-dropped. _I take it back, he can get more full of himself. _

_:Remarkable, the depths of depravity he can fall into,: _Quetzalcoatl said in amazement.

Lockhart had apparently waited for them to laugh, but continued after only a few smiles. "I see you've all bought a complete set of my books" – _duh! _Harry thought sarcastically. _You'd think he didn't make the booklist! – _"well done. I thought we'd start today with a little quiz. Nothing to worry about – just to check how well you've read them, how much you've taken in…" Harry was hopeful. That was actually not a bad idea. _He could test us on how we stand in our learning, or perhaps he could see if we managed to glean any useful information from his books! He may be a bit egotistical, but maybe he can teach us something after all… _

Harry's hopes were dashed as he turned over the test paper Lockhart handed the class. Not one of the questions had anything to do with dark creatures or spells, but instead focused entirely on Lockhart himself! He chanced a glance at Hermione, who was already on the seventh question, smiling slightly. Harry repressed the urge to sigh heavily. Hermione was apparently blinded by something; normally she was more than perceptive enough to catch the true point of this idiotic exam. _Maybe she has a crush? _

Harry suddenly had a wicked idea. He began writing answers to the questions, but not the ones Lockhart wanted to hear.

_What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color? __Puke green._

_What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition? __To become the Court Jester for the Ministry of Magic. _

_What, in your opinion, is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest achievement to date? __Tying his shoes in the morning. It must be difficult, with so little brainpower. _

Harry answered the rest of the questions in a similar manner and turned in his test with a flat look on his face. Hermione, of course, had finished first, so Harry now turned his full attention on her. "What do you think now?" Harry whispered softly.

"He's brilliant," Hermione answered with a large smile.

At that answer, Harry was seriously considering checking for illegal charms. _Where's the nice, logical Hermione we all know and love? _Thankfully, he was saved from a retort by Theo. "You're kidding!" Theo hissed at her. "Can't you see that the test is just for his own ego?"

"He just wants us familiar with what he's done," Hermione argued quietly, yet fervently.

There was no chance for the argument to continue as Lockhart stood up and rifled through the papers in front of the class. It was easy for Harry to tell when he got to his paper as Lockhart began scowling. Harry had to suppress a smile. Soon enough, their features switched as Lockhart began smiling widely at one of his test papers.

"Tut, tut… hardly any of you remembered that my favorite color is lilac. I say so in _Year with the Yetti._ And a few of you need to read _Wandering with Werewolves _more carefully – I clearly state in chapter twelve that my ideal birthday gift would be harmony between all magic and non-magic peoples – though I wouldn't say no to a large bottle of Ogden's Old Firewhisky!"

_He's memorized his own books? _Harry thought in astonishment. _How the hell did he manage to get this job if he's so self-obsessive? _

_:No wonder Snape looked so angry this morning; even he would likely be a better teacher in this field than this oaf.: _

"… but Miss Hermione Granger knew my secret ambition is to rid the world of evil and market my own range of hair-care potions – good girl! In fact, full marks! Where is Miss Hermione Granger?"

Hermione raised her hand slowly even as every single eye in the room eyed her either in disbelief – the males – or in jealousy – the females. "Excellent!" beamed Lockhart. "Take ten points for Gryffindor! And so – to business…"

Lockhart bent down and lifted a large, covered cage onto his desk. "Now, be warned! It is my job to arm you against the foulest creatures known to wizardkind! You may find yourselves facing your worst fears in this room. Know only that no harm can befall you whilst I am here. All I ask is that you remain calm."

Harry wanted to be hopeful, as Lockhart had managed a completely serious look during that entire speech, but he had the feeling that it wasn't worth it. He looked around; Draco looked vaguely interested, Blaise had his usual poker face on, and Theo appeared skeptical. On the Gryffindor area, Dean, Ron and Seamus looked apprehensive and excited. Neville, surprisingly, appeared fairly calm. A little nervous, but not overly so. The girls seemed to be hanging onto Lockhart's every word.

"I must ask you not to scream," Lockhart said in a low voice. "It might provoke them." Even Harry was wondering just what Lockhart had captured. _It can't be too terrible, considering his apparent lack of talent. _

Lockhart's placed a hand on the cover, and the class held its breath as Lockhart whipped off the cover. "Yes," he said dramatically. "_Freshly caught Cornish pixies._"

_No. Fucking. Way. He built up all that tension just for a simple annoyance found in forest groves? The only thing they try to do is trick and prank anyone that invades their grove. _

Apparently Harry wasn't the only one who knew about Cornish pixies, as Seamus Finnegan let out a snort of laughter that not even Lockhart could mistake as fear. "Those aren't very, well, _dangerous_¸ are they?" Seamus questioned, struggling to keep his amusement from expressing itself in a grin.

"Don't be so sure!" Lockhart said, waggling a finger in an annoying fashion that made Harry want to hit him. "Devilish tricky little blighters they can be!"

The pixies were electric blue and about eight inches high with pointed faces and voices so shrill it was like listening to a lot of budgies arguing. The moment the cover had been removed, they had started jabbering and rocketing around, rattling the bars and making faces at the people nearest them.

"Right then!" Lockhart said loudly. "Let's see what you make of them!" He opened the cage and the pixies all flew out at once.

Harry drew his wand from his holster immediately and swished it authoritatively. "_Immobulus!_"

The Immobilizing Jinx was not as strong as the Impediment Jinx, but it could affect several targets. Thankfully, Harry had made a point of learning this particular Jinx late in his first year, just in case.

All the fairies froze in midair, slowly blinking in surprise. "Before you simply throw us into a situation, perhaps you should explain how to deal with it?" Harry asked coolly.

Keeping his own shock in check, Lockhart looked at Harry with a smile. "Like you did, of course. I knew at least one person in my class would know how to handle a pesky pixy."

Harry's eyebrow twitched. _And he calls himself a teacher, _Harry thought in disgust. "Then perhaps you should spend the rest of this class showing just how to perform the Immobilizing Jinx. It is easily second year material, perhaps early third year. I only knew because I study ahead."

Lockhart was trapped and he knew it. The only magic he was really good at aside form personal hygiene charms – including glamours – was the Memory Charm. Defense had never been his strong suit. "Well, to promote inter-house relations, why don't you teach them?" Lockhart asked in a stroke of what he thought of as genius.

"Because I'm not so good at teaching," Harry said bluntly. "Besides, you're the teacher and the one getting paid for it."

_:Liar,: _Quetzalcoatl said amusedly. _:You taught your friends Occlumency pretty well.: _

Lockhart was sweating – on the back of his neck to hide it from others' view, but still sweating nonetheless. _What now, what now…? _Fortunately for him – unfortunately for the students watching him squirm – the pixies were beginning to break free of the jinx Harry had placed. "Alright everyone," he said, "please gather the pixies and put them back in the cage. Their purpose has been served by allowing you to see how to handle them. Your homework is to learn the Immobilizing Charm over the next week. Since I don't have anything else prepared for today, you're free to go after retrieving the pixies."

After class, Daphne reluctantly confessed that she was wrong to Harry and the others. "I was fooled by his books," she admitted. "The events seemed so real, and they correspond with a few things I've heard from my parents. But it's pretty obvious he's not great shakes at Defense, especially after you put him on the spot about the Immobilizing Jinx, Harry."

"Maybe Professor Lockhart has some sort of bad history with that particular jinx," Hermione insisted with a glare at Daphne. "Or perhaps he has some sort of block with it. It's not very powerful anyway; Professor Lockhart knows several more powerful spells."

Not wanting to get into an argument, Harry sent a piercing glare at Theo, who had opened his mouth, and they let the subject drop. At dinner, a tiny little first-year Gryffindor, a pipsqueak by any standards, approached Harry at the Slytherin table. He was shivering visibly, obviously pulling up every last strand of courage to do this act.

Harry smiled at him, wanting to encourage the houses to mingle. "Hey there. What's your name?"

"C-Colin, Colin Creevey," the boy said nervously.

"Another foolish Gryffindor?" Draco said loudly several seats down. "Stop dirtying our table, you sniveling brat, and go back to the table of fools where you belong."

"Ignore him," Harry told Colin. "He's just mad because he doesn't get any intelligent conversation with those brutes of his."

A bit more confident, Colin got up the nerve to ask what was originally on his mind. "I, I was wondering, well, if I could have a, um, picture?"

Harry blinked. "A picture?"

Colin nodded excitedly. "Yeah, so I can prove that I've met you. I know all about you; everyone's told me about how you survived when You-Know-Who tried to kill you and how he disappeared and everything and how you've still got a lightning scar on your forehead…" Colin said this very fast, obviously very enthusiastic about this particular topic. Harry resisted the urge to run. "It'd be really cool if, maybe, you could get a friend to take a picture of me and you together and then maybe you could sign it too?"

"_Signed photos, _Potter? You're giving out signed photos?!" Draco said loudly and incredulously, not bothering to wait for Harry's answer. His voice rang out throughout the Great Hall. "Everyone line up!" Draco roared to the crowd that was forming from his previous exclamation. "Harry Potter's giving out signed photos!"

"I most certainly am not giving out signed photos," Harry said calmly, yet his voice projected just as far as Malfoy's. Unfortunately, he was ignored.

"You're just jealous," piped up Colin at the now-standing Malfoy.

"_Jealous?_" said Malfoy amusedly, no longer yelling; everyone had gone quiet to see how this would play out. "Of what? I don't want a foul scar right across my head, thanks. I don't think getting your head cut open makes you that special, myself."

"And yet you didn't hesitate to alert the entire school of the request Colin here asked of me," Harry pointed out. "If I'm not so special then why bother to draw attention to yourself? In fact, you're acting pretty bold, _just like a Gryffindor._ Maybe you were sorted into the wrong house?"

Draco scowled as all the attention he'd meant to put on Potter suddenly shifted to him. "No, Scarhead, I was placed in the right house, unlike you. You will never be a true Slytherin, and neither will Weaslette over there." He gestured to Ginny and then smirked. "You know, Weaslette would love a signed photo from you, Potter. It'd be worth more than her family's whole house…"

Ginny got to her feet, whipping out her wand. Harry had done the same. Each was about to cast a spell in Draco's direction when Harry's sharp hearing picked up footsteps he already identified with Gilderoy Lockhart. A quick glance at Ginny ensured that she lowered her wand as well.

Just in time, as Lockhart strode into the hall for dinner. "What's all this?" he asked, walking over to the Slytherin table, his turquoise robes swirling behind him. "Who's giving out signed photos?"

_Shit. _

_:I second that remark.:_

Harry opened his mouth to speak but was cut short as Lockhart flung an arm around Harry's shoulders. Instinct took over and Harry twisted his body to be facing away from Lockhart and pulled on his arm, hard, flipping Lockhart over Harry's back and making him land on his back on the table, spilling dishes and food everywhere.

There was absolute silence for a moment as Lockhart got off the table. _Do you think I shouldn't have thrown him? _

_:I think it was worth it.:_

_Agreed._

Lockhart got to his feet and waved a wand at his clothes. "_Scourgify,_" Lockhart said irritably, cleaning the mess from his robes. He turned to face Harry, putting forth his best effort at a smile in this circumstance. It was a small, strained smile that came out. "Now why'd you go and do that?"

"I haven't been able to rely on anyone else but me for most of my life," Harry said coldly. "As such, I've developed a… an _instinct _that tends to hurt those who approach me with movements that could be intended to harm me physically."

"Surely you can control that instinct?" Lockhart asked with an assured look.

"Yes," Harry admitted. "But only when I'm with people I trust. You are not among them. Trust is not given, but earned, and you have not yet earned mine."

Lockhart reddened a little. "Do not worry, Mr. Potter. I am confident I shall have your respect and trust by the end of the year." With that, he strode to the teacher's table.

"Not if today's class was any indication of your skill," Harry muttered under his breath as the crowd dispersed.

"For once, we agree," Draco said in a low voice.

Harry turned to Draco, a new idea brimming. "Hey Malfoy, I've got a proposition for you."

"I'm listening."

"How about a truce, just for as long as Lockhart's in the school? Your group and my group cease hostilities and work together to make Lockhart's life miserable?"

Draco looked very interested. "Tell me more."

"My friends and the Weasley Twins, as you know, are responsible for the prank war last year," Harry reminded Draco. "We're also teaming up against Lockhart. You join us and you temporarily acquire immunity to our pranks. Then there is also the fact that you'll be able to help us make Lockhart's life even more miserable."

"How so?"

"As the Malfoy heir, you have tremendous political power in Slytherin. You can influence the other Slytherins to a great extent, and that means we'll have access to older students with more terrifying and prank-worthy spells."

"True," Draco mused. "I shall consider this proposal."

"Thank you."

The rest of the school week passed without further incident. Harry was helping Ginny adjust to Slytherin house, and she was feeling better about it after a talk with half of her brothers – she still hadn't been able to talk with Percy, Charlie or Bill. Harry lent her Hedwig to send an owl to Charlie in Romania and then Bill in Egypt.

Ginny had made a couple of friends in her year who she now hung out with in most of her time. She had also made friends with Hermione, who helped her every now and then with her homework.

Harry made a concerted effort to avoid Lockhart as much as he could over the week, excepting Defense classes. The latest one on Friday had Harry smiling smugly.

Lockhart had apparently decided that it wasn't worth it to try and bring actual creatures to class, so he announced to the class that they were going to enact what he'd written. "Hopefully watching it in action will help you learn dueling skills, and if you have any questions, please let me know."

Lockhart proceeded to enact the first part of one his books, _Wandering with Werewolves. _"Now, I need a werewolf… Harry! Why don't you come up here and help us out? Bring your book!"

Harry blinked slowly before getting up and moving up to the front of the class with his book. "Now what?"

"Well, act the part of the werewolf, of course!" Lockhart said as if it was common sense.

Harry suppressed a groan as he began to act out what he read. _This is so humiliating… Why me?_

_:Because you're Lockhart's favorite student,: _Quetzalcoatl pointed out dryly. _:And there's not much you can do to change that.: _

"Now, Harry, a nice long howl!" Lockhart cried enthusiastically.

Harry suddenly realized that he now had an opportunity to scare the hell out of Lockhart. Swiftly changing his vocal cords with his Metamorph talents to be deeper, rougher, and more menacing, Harry tossed his head back and let loose an earsplitting howl. He was quite proud of how he managed to make it resemble one of the great wolf-like beasts he'd fought on Terra.

Harry grinned in a feral way at Lockhart away from the class, showing teeth that he used his Metamorph powers to shape into fangs. He also changed his eyes to amber to add to the effect. Lockhart stared at him in utter shock, before closing his eyes and rubbing them. He opened them again, but Harry was just looking at him like he always did, with a touch of disdain.

"Well, I did my howl, get on with it," Harry said impatiently, though he was laughing inside.

Quetzalcoatl was also highly amused. _:Well done, Harry. Do you think he'll stop calling you up front?:_

_I hope not, that was fun! I can't wait for him to move on to vampires! _Each of them shared a mental laugh at that.

After class, Harry's friends met up with him. "Just what did you do?" Daphne asked amusedly. "Lockhart looked really spooked."

Harry smiled mischievously. "Me? I didn't do anything. How'd I do on the howl? Realistic?"

"Cerberus congratulates you," Theo said with his eyes slightly unfocused. "You sounded like a real werewolf."

"All the students appeared unnerved by the howl as well," Blaise commented. "It did sound quite genuine."

"How did you manage that?" Hermione asked.

Harry grinned at her and with a brief moment of concentration changed his nose to look like Snape's and back again. "Remember?"

Hermione's eyes widened but nodded. Harry had just reminded her of the fact that he was a Metamorphmagus. _He must have changed his vocal cords a bit. _She then had to leave, as her next class was not with the Slytherins. "See you later!"

"Later, Hermione!"

"So," Theo asked after Hermione had left. "What _did _you do to creep out Lockhart?"

"Not saying!" Harry laughed as he was immediately chased by his friends down the halls.

Flint called for the first Quidditch practice that weekend. As expected, it was early in the morning. What was not expected was that the seven Slytherin players were joined by none other than Draco Malfoy.

"Just what are you doing here, Malfoy?" Harry demanded.

"What's it look like? I'm here to compete for your position, Potter." Draco turned to Flint, showing his broom. "I have a Nimbus 2001, brand new. And if I'm put onto the position of Seeker I can promise Nimbus 2001s for every player on our team."

Flint looked tempted. Harry decided to step in. "How about we have a little competition? We let out the Snitch and whoever catches it first is Seeker?"

"Sounds good," Flint grunted.

A minute later, Harry on his Nimbus 2000 was flying around, trying to spot the Snitch, while Draco was tailing him on his Nimbus 2001, apparently wanting to win on the speed of his broom alone.

_Well, if he's going to follow me, he's going to pay the price,_ Harry thought with a malicious smile, suddenly going into a near-vertical dive. As expected Draco followed. The ground was approaching quickly, the wind whistling through Harry's ears and pressing against his face, but at the last second Harry pulled up, his feet skimming the grass. He could feel the Nimbus protesting, but they managed it. Draco didn't have Harry's reflexes, and plowed right into the ground.

Harry smirked as he looked back at Draco, who was slowly getting to his feet and remounting his broom. As Draco was just getting up in the air, Harry spotted the Snitch and rocketed to it before Draco even knew Harry had seen it. Grasping the Snitch, Harry returned to Flint. "I win."

"That wasn't fair!" Draco was screaming. "If you hadn't pulled that Wronski Feint, I would have had it!"

Harry smirked. "It's a perfectly legal move. Just admit it, I'm a better Seeker than you are." Draco scowled and stalked off.

"Now that we have our Seeker, let's start practice," Flint ordered. "Ten laps around the pitch! Potter, twenty for you!"

Harry returned from practice a little tired, but pleased with his workout. He went to the library to research weight charms. It took him an hour, but he found what he was looking for. He immediately made his robes and school uniform weigh fifty pounds each. He smiled as he felt the strain walking back to the common room. _I should be getting faster daily now._

With that taken care of, Harry made sure he constantly tested his friends' shields, making sure to penetrate past their outer personas to make sure they had a strong back-up in case Dumbledore or Snape decided to dig deeper than usual. Harry also alternated tactics for each attack; sometimes he would be outright brutal, slamming against their shields, but just as often he would try the sneaky approach, keeping his presence as unknown as possible and then quietly slipping in.

Time passed as usual for the next couple of weeks, and in his spare time Harry wondered just what Dobby the house elf had been worried about. So far, the most dangerous things he'd seen were the Mandrakes he'd replanted in his first week at Hogwarts, and those weren't remotely evil. _Was he mistaken? _His gut told him that there was something he was missing, but Harry for the life of him couldn't think of what. _Unless Dobby was telling of the portals… but how would that help resurrect Voldemort? _

On the third Saturday after school started, Harry was going to the Great Hall for dinner when he heard a soft sniffling not far away. He stopped and cocked his head, listening intently. He slowly walked to where the sound led him and came across Ginny in the bathroom known commonly as Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, sniffling.

Harry hesitated; the girls' bathroom was held by males almost everywhere as forbidden territory, and for good reason. Those of the female sex tended towards one of two responses to a male intrusion. The first one was a horrible screeching that could deafen a person and throwing things at the intruder. In the second response, the female suddenly acquired superhuman strength and spent a minute slapping the hell out of the male before tossing them out. Either case was shortly followed by spreading the word through the gossips and a loss of reputation for weeks.

So, Harry stood outside the door to the bathroom. "Er, Ginny? Are you ok?" Harry mentally kicked himself. _Of course she's not ok, you idiot! She's crying isn't she? _

Ginny jerked her head upwards to see the concerned look on Harry's face. She stood up and wiped her eyes quickly, not wanting to lose face in front of her crush. "I'm fine," she said, though her voice betrayed her.

"I thought it was my job to say I'm fine when I'm not," Harry said in an irritated voice, hoping to cheer her up a bit. He was gratified to hear a soft giggle. "Tell you what, I'll stay out here while you clean up your face a bit, and when you come out we can talk about it if you want."

A quiet minute later, Ginny walked out of the girl's bathroom with hardly a trace of her having been crying to begin with. "You in the mood for dinner?" Harry asked gently. Ginny shook her head silently. "You want to go back to the common room so we can talk?" Ginny nodded. "Ok, to the common room we go."

Several minutes later, Harry and Ginny sat down on the comfortable couches by the fire. The common room was empty aside from them. They sat in silence for a few seconds. "You ready to talk about it?"

Ginny hesitated, but nodded. She took a deep breath. "It's Ron."

Harry managed to keep himself calm. "What about him?"

"He said some… things…"

"I can't help if I don't know what happened," Harry said reasonably.

Ginny nodded. "I suppose I should tell you from the beginning…"

Flashback: Ginny's Point of View

_Ginny was finally beginning to relax at lunch. She had a few friends in Slytherin now, classes were going ok, and her family still seemed to accept her. _Maybe, just maybe, _Ginny thought to herself, _I'll survive the next seven years.

_So, Ginny began to actively engage in some of the conversation, making comments and not just answering questions asked of her. After several minutes of light conversation, Ginny decided to raise the subject of relatives in different houses. _

"_So, does anybody else have a brother or sister in a different house?"_

"_I've got an older brother in Ravenclaw," Timothy, a boy who was tall for his age with dirty blond hair, volunteered. _

"_Do you think you'll be able to spend much time with him during the school year?" Ginny asked. _

_Timothy frowned. "I dunno. Ravenclaw and Slytherin are usually on good terms with each other, so I don't think anyone would mind if I went and sat by him occasionally during lunch or something. But meals are practically the only thing we'll be able to spend together, since we're in different houses and years." _

"_Ginny, you can't be thinking of going over to the Gryffindor table to sit with your brothers, can you?" Lucille, a petite brunette, gasped. _

"_Well, why not?" Ginny said boldly. "They're family, and I'm not going to sacrifice my relationship with my brothers just to stay safe in Slytherin." She personally thought she sounded much firmer and braver than she felt. _

"_I'm with her," Timothy said after a moment. "This stupid house rivalry shouldn't be able to break up families, after all. Just because we're all different doesn't mean we can't get along." _

"_Hey, can we visit your twin brothers?" Mallory, a sandy-haired girl, asked excitedly. _

_Ginny smiled even as she rolled her eyes. Mallory had a crush on the twins upon first sight, and Ginny _still _didn't understand why. "Yes, we can see Fred and George too." _

End Flashback

"You're kidding!" Harry interrupted. "One of your friends has a crush on the Weasley Twins? Both of them, not just one?"

Ginny giggled. "Looks that way."

"She's either insane or very ambitious," Harry muttered, producing another giggle out of Ginny.

"She's in Slytherin, isn't she?" Ginny asked with a grin. "I'm going with ambitious just for that alone. Now can we get on with it?"

"Right, right, go on." Harry was glad that Ginny was smiling again. He only hoped she could still smile after she finished telling him whatever it was that had upset her so earlier.

Flashback: Ginny's POV

"_Yes, we can see Fred and George too."_

"_Yes!" Mallory cheered. _

"_Well, I suppose I'll come too," Lucille said reluctantly. _

_Ginny got up. "Let's go, then!" _

_They went over to Fred and George first, as they were easily the most accepting of the Weasleys. Ginny left her friends chatting with them because she wanted to sit and eat with Ron like they used to at the Burrow. _

"_Hey Ron," Ginny greeted. _

"_Ginny…"_

"_What's wrong?"_

"_Why are you bringing more Slytherins to the Gryffindor table?"_

_Ginny blinked. "They're my friends and wanted to meet my family." _

_Ron scowled. "How can you be sure they're trustworthy?" _

"_What do you mean? They're my friends!"_

"_They're SLYTHERINS! Who's to say they weren't put up to being friends with you to set you up later?" _

End Flashback

"He didn't!" Harry said in shock.

"He did," Ginny said sadly.

"I can't believe he said that! In front of you no less!" Harry ranted as he got up and started to pace. _By saying all Slytherins were untrustworthy, he slighted his own sister! _"And how dare he say that no Slytherins are trustworthy?! That stereotypical jackass! He's no better than Malfoy! Scratch that, he's worse than Malfoy! Malfoy at least recognizes the fact that he's a stereotypical jackass, even if he doesn't feel like changing that because he feels superior to everyone else!"

"Maybe he forgot I was a Slytherin?" Ginny asked meekly.

Harry began to calm down. "Yeah, that's probably why he said it," he agreed. "In his own way, I think he was trying to protect you by keeping you from consorting with other Slytherins. But that's still no reason to group all Slytherins in the same boat like that. It'd be like saying that all Gryffindors are idiotic fools, or all Hufflepuffs are spineless weaklings. You'd think that I'd shown your fool idiot of a brother that I, at least, keep my word. Not all Slytherins are like Malfoy."

Ginny held up her hands. "You're preaching to the choir, Harry."

Harry blinked, and then chuckled. "Right. Kinda forgot that I wasn't alone for a second there. So, aside from your brother being an arse, is there anything else you want to talk about?"

Ginny shifted, her face reverting back to sadness. "Actually, yeah. I've been in Slytherin for only a few weeks now, but even I can see that the house is divided into pureblood supremacists, neutral people, and those who support what you're doing. How do you cope? How do you make sure you're not being stabbed in the back in the middle of the night? No one harms you or your friends…"

Harry smiled. "I got lucky. When I joined the Quidditch team, my captain said that if anything happened to me, the star Seeker, he would severely hurt the perpetrator. No one wants to know what he'll do if I die, so they stay out of my way. And last year, I proved that I protect and avenge my friends. No one will hurt you."

Ginny was now having a hard time not feinting. It was almost like a dream. Here Harry was, proclaiming proudly that he protects his friends, of which Ginny was one of them. _He promised he wouldn't let anyone hurt me… keep it together, Weasley! Harry doesn't need a swooning teenager right now! _She struggled to bring her attention back to Harry, who was speaking again.

"You know, Ginny, it might help if you got a diary or something. Sometimes just writing everything out can be very cathartic," Harry suggested. _Especially for people who can't just carry another mentality in their head. _"It also helps when you're trying to organize your thoughts, I suppose, so you can figure out just what you're going to do."

"Are you saying that you don't want to talk to me often?" Ginny asked quietly.

Harry's head whipped over to look at Ginny. "Don't ever think like that!" he reprimanded gently. "I enjoy talking with you. I'm just saying, I'm not always going to be available, for one reason or another." _In other words, I may be a bit busy finding a place to put a permanent portal. _"It's not good to become totally dependent on someone else who may or may not be around."

Ginny was beginning to see his point. "Yeah, I guess."

"Do you need me to owl order a diary for you?" Harry offered.

"No, no that's ok!" Ginny said hurriedly. "I've got a diary already; I just haven't started writing in it, that's all."

"Ok," Harry said simply. "Hope this helps."

That night, Ginny lay in bed, thinking. _Well, I may as well start the diary now, _she thought idly before getting up and digging through her books to get out the small diary, some ink and a quill.

_September 21_

_Dear Diary, my name is Ginny Weasley. _

Ginny paused, thinking of what to put next, but when she looked down, her words were disappearing into the book! "What?" she gasped. Then words came back up.

_**Hello, Ginny Weasley. My name is Tom Riddle. **_

--------------------------------------------------

HA! Bet you never saw THAT coming! Harry accidentally pushes Ginny into writing into Tom Riddle's Diary, who'd have thought? Anyway, I'll repeat what I said earlier. This is NOT a Harry/Ginny fic. Harry's just trying to fit the role of the understanding "cool" big brother that Ginny can turn to, since Ron's being an arse as usual.

Anyway, hope this was a good enough chapter for you all! Read and Review, please! I could always use some feedback.


	3. Will the Real Heir of Slytherin Stand up

I've gotten some very interesting reviews... a couple of people pointed out that Harry should be Scanning everyone he meets now, but you're all forgetting something. He CAN'T use his Terran spells without inhibiting his progress in wizarding magic. So, unless necessary, he won't be using them.

And, please people, no more suggestions for pairings. I've seen/heard it all by now. I'm sorry for all the Harry/Ginny and Harry/Hermione fans out there, but that will NOT be happening. I really can't write a Harry/Harem. Or rather, I could, but it would completley ruin the plot of this story. Any relationships may develop in late third, fourth or fifth year, ok?

Disclaimer: I am a college student, working for little more than minimum wage. Based off that alone, I am not J.K.Rowling. Thusly, I do not own Harry Potter.

Chapter Three: Will the Real Heir of Slytherin Please Stand Up?

A month had passed since Harry's conversation with Ginny, and Harry was glad she had almost fully recovered. Ginny had confronted Ron about his ignorant comment, and Ron had been subject to Ginny's favorite curse: the Bat Bogey Hex.

Lockhart's classes were dismal as usual, but Harry still had loads of fun Metamorphing his face so only Lockhart could see. Sometimes he looked like a werewolf, at others he looked like a vampire. When he really wanted to disturb Lockhart's sanity, Harry used his Metamorph powers to make his face slowly sag and appear as thought it was melting off his skull.

Hermione had not long ago reluctantly admitted that Lockhart didn't know what he was teaching. Harry had proven it to her by using his blossoming Legilimency skills to pull some memories from Lockhart and share them with his friends. Apparently Lockhart was a complete fraud, using the Memory Charm to take credit for the works of others. Hermione had been completely shocked at that.

"I trusted him!" Hermione whispered, horrified. "How can he just get away with that? Surely someone would have noticed before!"

"Not if he's constantly away," Daphne pointed out. "If he's away getting more stories or writing them, the people can't call on him to do a repeat performance."

"Do you think he's Obliviated us?" Theo asked.

"No," Harry said firmly. "He hasn't. For one thing, there are too many witnesses at any given time. And for another, our Occlumency shields should be able to withstand any Memory Charm except from someone with Dumbledore's power, and let's admit it; there's no way Lockhart's even a tenth of Dumbledore's power. He couldn't touch us if he tried in a real duel."

"He's right," Hermione agreed. "Especially with all the training you've been giving us, Harry."

"Actually, I'm going to add a new element to your training." Harry then proceeded to charm everyone's clothes to weigh an additional ten pounds each. After that, he quickly taught them all the charm, and told them to increase the weights of all their clothing after dressing in the morning, and to remove it only after undressing.

"You'll gain speed as time goes by. Make sure you increase the weights whenever you feel comfortable with it," Harry ordered.

"Won't the additional weight crush our bones as we keep increasing it?" Blaise asked.

"No," Harry answered. "Not if you do it gradually. True, if we suddenly added twenty tons to your clothes, _then _you'd likely crush your bones, but by building your way up, you make your bones stronger with your muscles."

"Ah," was all Blaise said.

"Anybody else got any questions? No? Good. Let's get to class." _These weights won't train all the bones, though,_ Harry realized. _Only by actually manipulating the gravity itself can we do that. I wish I knew how to enchant clothes with Gravija… normally casting Gravija on it won't last long… and I'm not supposed to be casting my Terran spells except in emergencies… We'll just have to wait until I can arrange for all of us to go to Terra to get the training clothes. _

More time passed, and Harry noticed that Ginny was getting paler and paler, and when Harry tried to talk to her about it, Ginny seemed exhausted. _Is it the stress of classes, or is she sick, or what? _Harry thought with concern and frustration. Finally, Harry decided that he would confront her during the Halloween feast, as that would be the one time almost guaranteed that she would come to the feast.

Halloween arrived, and Ginny was looking like she had lost about a pint of blood. Harry was getting quite concerned, as were Ginny's friends. They had even confided in him that they were worried. Of course, they felt he should do something about it, but Harry had no idea just what was wrong! Dispelling it could simply make Ginny worse!

During the feast, however, Ginny was nowhere to be found. "Where's Ginny?" Harry asked Lucille, one of Ginny's friends as the feast was drawing to a close.

"She's in bed back in Slytherin," Lucille said sadly. "She really isn't feeling too well."

"Have you seen how pale she's gotten recently?" Mallory interjected. "I wouldn't be feeling well with that either!"

"In bed? That means she's inside the girls' area of the dorms, and that means I can't get in," Harry mused.

"_Rip… tear… so hungry… fresh… KILL!"_

It was disjointed, but Harry definitely heard another voice. "Did anyone hear that?" he asked quickly.

"Hear what?" Hermione asked.

_:It was in Parseltongue,: _Quetzalcoatl told Harry. _:No one would have heard anything but some very low hissing.: _

_Parseltongue? That means… we have a killer snake on the loose! _Harry leapt to his feet and took off as fast as he could with the weights on; no matter how much he wanted to, he couldn't afford to dispel the weights and reveal his true abilities to Dumbledore. But he knew that sooner or later, his ability to speak Parseltongue would be revealed, and he couldn't let some innocent die! _What if it's Ginny? _

Harry followed the snake voice to the stairs, but it was quickly retreating. It had been hard to hear to begin with, but now, it seemed, it had finished its job. _Not on my watch, _Harry thought grimly. "_Carpe Retracto!_" he yelled, throwing his wand up to point at the huge chandelier on the ceiling. A bolt of purple magic erupted and attached itself to the chandelier before starting to pull Harry up. Harry's forward momentum carried him to the wall, where he launched himself outwards again, heading to the third floor he had heard the snake go to. Harry released the magic as he was over the third floor landing and rolled upon impact.

Harry had the sinking feeling that he was too late even as he raced through the corridor. _Hmm, looks like Moaning Myrtle's flooded her bathroom today…_ Harry noted before reaching the end of the corridor. He looked up and saw two things definitely out of the ordinary: Mrs. Norris, Filch's beloved cat, was an ashen gray color with its fur bristled up against some enemy. _It's been Petrified, _Harry realized. _At least it's not permanent. _

But it was the second strange part of the scene that Harry blinked several times at. "The Chamber of Secrets has been opened," he read aloud. "Enemies of the Heir beware." He frowned. _The Chamber of Secrets, according to Hogwarts: A History, is a secret part of Hogwarts that Salazar Slytherin made. After much searching, no one has ever found it. It says that only Slytherin's Heir should be able to open it, and the message seems to verify that the Heir is responsible somehow. But how was Mrs. Norris Petrified? Could it be that there's someone else with the Petrify spell? Or was it the Dark magic Mrs. Sprout mentioned? Or was it some magical creature? _

_:You heard that snake before, right?: _

Harry nodded to himself. _Magical creature, then, and probably of the snake variety. That makes sense, as Slytherin was apparently well known as a Parselmouth. _Harry suddenly had an idea. _Wait, if it's a snake, maybe Seth knows what it was! _

Before Harry could ask Seth, however, students had come upstairs and saw what Harry was looking at. They gathered around and started whispering to themselves.

"Is that Mrs. Norris?"

"What's wrong with her?"

"Is that cat dead?"

"Looks like Myrtle's flooded the bathroom again…"

Filch, who happened to be passing by, looking for his cat, saw the crowd and immediately moved forward to get rid of the bothersome students. _Bet they're all making fun of the old Squib, _Filch thought bitterly. _How arrogant they are, with their magic, not caring if they put the Squib of a pureblood family to work like a common Muggle! _

He pushed through the crowd and saw Harry Potter in the center of the crowd, frowning thoughtfully at something in the puddle on the floor. Following his eyes, Filch saw the lifeless form of his cat.

"Mrs. Norris!" Filch cried, rushing forward as he made to pick up the cat. Suddenly, a firm, strong grip had his arm, preventing him from reaching his beloved pet.

"Don't," Harry said firmly. "There's no way to tell if touching Mrs. Norris will curse anybody else."

"You!" Filch hissed. "You did this to my cat! You killed her!"

Harry raised an eyebrow. "If I did, then why would I have stopped you from possibly getting cursed? I could have easily just let you touch her and claimed I didn't know that was going to happen."

"You all hate me!" Filch spat. "Especially you Slytherins! I know what you do. Charming the suits of armor to trip me, sending jinxes at me down the hall, laying traps for me, muddying up the castle… you do this just to hurt me!"

"Listen to yourself, Filch!" Harry answered, raising his voice. "The important thing right now is finding out what happened to your cat! If it could happen to her, it could happen to any of us!" The murmurs that had died down as Filch began arguing with Harry rose up again, this time with a fearful note. Harry looked at the crowd. "You!" he said, pointing at a random student. "Find Dumbledore. He'll know what to do. You, find McGonagall. You get Snape. You, find Flitwick. Tell them Mrs. Norris has been Petrified on the third floor by Myrtle's bathroom. Go!" The four he pointed out scurried off.

"Petrified?" Filch asked confusedly. "But Mrs. Norris looks dead!"

Harry shook his head. "_Wingardium Leviosa._" He floated Mrs. Norris up to eye level. "Notice how ashen her body is? Don't you see how her hairs, even minutes after her supposed 'death' haven't fallen back down? No, she's been turned to stone. That means she can be saved with the Mandragora Potion. Professor Sprout is working with a bunch of Mandrakes in the Greenhouses, so when they've matured, Mrs. Norris will be fine," Harry said soothingly. _But I'm not about to use Dispel on her; having Mrs. Norris out of the way is a blessing for any late night runs I may need to make._

_:The same holds true for whoever is responsible for this,: _Quetzalcoatl reminded Harry. _:In fact, that may be the motive for choosing this victim to start with.:_

Harry mentally cursed. _Damn, you're right! We need to find out what this monster is and stop it! _

_:Do you think it could have been a monster that managed to go through a portal from Terra? This is a magic-rich environment, after all.:_

Harry considered that option for a moment._ I doubt it. If that was true, then who would have written the message on the wall? No, this was a monster already present._

Malfoy stepped forward, joining Harry and Filch in the center. "The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the Heir beware! That means you, Mudbloods and blood traitors! The Heir will purge the school of all impurity!"

"Oh shut up, Malfoy," Harry said tiredly. "Purity of blood isn't important. Look at Crabbe and Goyle, for instance. Purebloods, yes, but they aren't great shakes at magic are they?" Sniggers throughout the hall resounded as Malfoy's face turned slightly pink. "And then there's Hermione, a Muggleborn who's better than you in grades and spell-casting, and she started out with less knowledge than you did with your family. And then there's me, the halfblood who can kick your ass any day of the week." Malfoy scowled and was about to reply when Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, Flitwick and, to Harry's horror, Lockhart arrived. Malfoy quickly retreated.

Dumbledore spied the floating form of Mrs. Norris and read the message on the wall. "The Chamber of Secrets has been opened… What happened to your cat, Argus?"

"It was clearly the Transmogrifian Torture!" Lockhart exclaimed.

"No, she's been Petrified," Filch said in an annoyed fashion, glaring at the overly-bright blue robes Lockhart was wearing today.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow and inspected the floating cat. "So she is. If I may ask, who diagnosed her?"

"Young Potter did, sir."

"Harry?" Dumbledore asked, surprised. He hadn't expected Harry to know how to identify Petrifications, despite Sprout's report of his interest in the Mandragora Potion. _Interesting. Let's see how much he knows. _"How did you know?" Harry quickly repeated the symptoms he'd told Filch. "Well done. I noticed that you ran out of the feast a little early today. Would you care to explain why?"

Harry rapidly constructed a memory that resembled what had truly happened in the Great Hall, but feigned confusion and horror. "I heard a voice. It was faint, but definitely there. It was saying stuff like 'kill' and 'rip' and 'tear.' I was concerned that it was after Ginny Weasley, since she hadn't shown up for the feast, so I followed the voice as fast as I could. I couldn't keep up, though. I think it was the beast of the Chamber, judging from the message," Harry concluded, indicating the message written in blood.

"So you know the legend," Dumbledore observed. He looked around, noting with amusement that very few seemed to know what he was talking about. "Perhaps you could share with your classmates?"

Harry repressed a sigh; he had to obey to keep up appearances. "Sure, Professor." He turned to face the other students. "The Four Founders, as we all know, built Hogwarts. Each of our houses is based on the name and ideals of them. Helga Hufflepuff was known for her loyalty, Rowena Ravenclaw for her wisdom, Godric Gryffindor for his bravery and Salazar Slytherin for his cunning.

"The Founders, however, had an internal argument. Godric, Rowena and Helga all wanted the school to be open to everyone, but Salazar believed that they should only teach those whose families were magical as well. Unable to resolve the argument one way or the other, Salazar eventually left Hogwarts. This very argument has led to the creation of the idea of pureblood supremacy.

"The legend of the Chamber of Secrets builds on this. It states that Salazar built an extra room somewhere in Hogwarts, a room that only he or his Heirs could access, and in that room he placed a monster, a monster that his Heirs could control. Supposedly, the Heir of Slytherin was meant to then use the monster to purge Hogwarts of all those with Muggle blood. There has been much searching for the Chamber, but it has never been found," Harry finished. "The legend may be found in _Hogwarts: A History_."

"A succinct and wholly accurate summary," Snape praised. "Twenty points to Slytherin." McGonagall did not argue.

"Now the question is, who is the Heir of Slytherin?" Dumbledore murmured. "Minerva, Severus, Filius, Gilderoy, we need to discuss our plans."

"My office is the closest, Headmaster," Lockhart volunteered.

"Thank you, lead the way. Harry, please levitate Mrs. Norris to the Hospital Wing for Argus. I will be by later to check for curses."

"Yes sir." The crowd slowly started to dissipate as students headed in various directions. Harry and Filch began walking to the Hospital Wing.

After a minute of silence, Filch spoke up, desperately wanting to know just one thing. "Why did you stop me from possibly getting cursed? You all hate me."

Harry sighed. "You know, I don't really hate you. I don't like the fact that you do your job pretty damn well, despite the fact that you're a Squib. You know loads of the secret passageways and you're very quick and silent. That makes it hard for anyone to get around at night. That can irritate anyone."

"You know I'm a Squib?" Filch asked, surprised. He hadn't revealed that secret to anyone but the Headmaster.

Harry shrugged. "It's a little easy to figure out once people pay attention. I've never seen you with a wand in hand, and you always clean the Muggle way. Most students don't even realize that you're a Squib. Messes are pretty easy to clean magically, so they don't think much of making them. Your reaction to it, in their point of view, is uncalled for and overly harsh."

"So, you think that my hiding the fact that I'm a Squib is actually the cause of the hate?" Filch asked with a bit of curiosity.

"Ultimately, yeah," Harry affirmed. "But on the other hand, telling them may make them pity you, and that feeling just sucks. Or the more sadistic students could take advantage of that." He shrugged. "You can go on hating us students for being able to use magic, or you can explain your situation. It's all up to you, really. It's your life."

Filch appeared thoughtful as they reached the Hospital Wing. Silently, Harry levitated Mrs. Norris onto a bed as Filch explained the situation to Madame Pomfrey, and Harry exited. "Potter!" Harry turned around to see Filch standing outside the Hospital Wing. "Thanks."

Harry understood that Filch was talking not only about levitating Mrs. Norris, but for showing Filch that not all the students hated him. Harry bowed his head as memories flashed through it, memories that seemed eerily similar to the present situation.

Flashback

"_Thanks, Harry."_

"_For what?" _

"_Restoring my humanity," Squall answered quietly. "If you hadn't made the effort when we first met, I would have become heartless, obsessed only with gaining power and following the rules. You showed me that even a mercenary retains his humanity. So, again, thank you for saving me."_

End Flashback

Flashback

"_Thanks, Harry."_

"_Why are you thanking me, Quistis? You're the one who helped me find this book, not the other way around."_

"_Not for that, Harry. Thanks for helping me to get out of my shell and overcome my insecurities to make friends. You helped me see that I'm not just a bit of a bookworm, that the only thing holding me back is myself. So, thank you for saving me." _

End Flashback

Flashback

"_Hey, Harry. Thanks."_

"_Eh? For what, Tsuri?"_

"_I was beginning to give up hope that people could look underneath the exterior and see the true me. All anyone ever seems to see is how I look, but you and your friends, you guys took the time to get to know me, discovering that I, too, am human. Thanks for saving me from my pit of despair." _

End Flashback

_Thank you for saving me, _Harry thought, closing his eyes. _Why do they all say that? _"It's what I do," he whispered as much to Filch as to himself before turning on his heel, cloak billowing out behind him as he walked away impressively to check on Ginny.

As it turned out, Ginny had been safe in the common room the whole time, according to her account, in any case. Harry was glad, but at the same time confused. _Who is the Heir? _

For the next week, the entire school was buzzing about who could possibly be the Heir of Slytherin. Unsurprisingly, most students suspected a member of Slytherin house. And the majority of them suspected either Harry Potter or Draco Malfoy, the two opposing leaders of Slytherin.

Harry rather thought that the very idea of him being the Heir of Slytherin was stupid. One of his best friends was a Muggleborn – Hermione – and Harry had protected blood traitors – the Weasley family. Furthermore, Harry himself wasn't pureblood, as his mother was Muggleborn.

"I swear, sometimes I think the students are just a mob of idiots," Harry ranted to his friends in the halls.

"Don't worry about it, it'll die down soon," Hermione soothed.

"But the question remains: to whom belongs the title Heir of Slytherin?" Blaise asked, calm as ever.

"And what's the beast in the Chamber of Secrets?" Theo added with a frown.

"I'm certain it's a snake of some sort," Harry told them. "The voice I heard was in Parseltongue." _And there have been too many people watching us for me to ask Seth. This is just getting flat-out annoying. _

"A snake that Petrifies people?" Daphne repeated with a frown. "That sounds familiar somehow."

"Back on my world, there were loads of creatures able to Petrify unwary travelers," Harry suggested. "How about I run through them?"

"Couldn't hurt, and we can tell you if they exist here."

So Harry started rambling off names. The two main ones that were for sure here on Earth were the Cockatrix and the Basilisk. "It's gotta be a Basilisk, then," Harry concluded. "It's a snake, and it can petrify people in my world."

"We don't know if it has different powers on this world, though," Theo pointed out.

"A quick trip to the library can fix that!" Hermione assured them. An hour later, she had found the correct page. "Let's see here…

_Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy, and Basilisk flees from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it. _

"That's certainly much more lethal than the Basilisk from Terra!" Harry exclaimed. "Killing with just its eyes?!"

"That scratches out the Basilisk idea, then," Hermione said sadly.

"Not necessarily," Blaise pointed out. "It said 'all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death,' correct?" At the nod, he continued. "But what if the beam has been interrupted, somehow?"

Harry's eyes lit up. "You mean like through a reflection, or through something!" Blaise nodded. "The glare wouldn't have full power," Harry thought aloud. "It might just be able to Petrify someone."

"Hey, aren't you forgetting something?" Daphne asked caustically. "If Salazar Slytherin put a Basilisk in there, even a baby one, it'd be absolutely enormous after a thousand years. How's it getting around without being seen?"

No one had an answer. "Well, it's still our best guess for the moment," Harry concluded after several moments. He looked around. "I'm going to ask Seth." He brought Seth from the tattoo-state in his skin and gently woke him up. _"Seth, I have a question."_

"_What is it, Harry?" _Seth yawned.

"_Let's suppose we're facing a Basilisk back on Terra. If it was really, really strong, could it use its paralyzing gaze to kill instead of Petrify?"_

"_Ah, so you've discovered this world's Basilisk?"_ Seth asked amusedly.

"_Yes… wait a second, you knew?"_

"_Of course. Magical snakes know every single kind of snake there is, magical or not. When we transferred to this world, my own magic linked with the first available magical snake in the area and gave me this world's knowledge of snakes."_

"_You can sense other snakes?" _Harry asked, dumbfounded.

"_Only if they're very, very powerful or close by." _

"_Would a Basilisk count as powerful?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Is there one nearby?"_

"_Not at the moment… but there was one on Halloween." _

"_Where was it?" _Harry asked eagerly.

"_The best way to put it would be… inside the walls somehow." _

"_Could you sense where it went?"_

"_No, it went too far for me to tell." _

"_Thank you very much. You've been very helpful. Do you want to sleep in my skin again, or explore a bit?"_

Seth gave the snake equivalent of a yawn again. _"Sleep, please."_

Harry changed Seth back into his tattoo form. _He's getting lazy… _"Seth told me that he can sense powerful magical snakes in the area, and that he sensed a Basilisk in the walls on Halloween."

"The walls?" Daphne asked skeptically.

Hermione's eyes widened. "Of course! There are pipes leading all over Hogwarts for water and such; the Basilisk must be using the plumbing!"

"So simple, yet brilliant," Blaise murmured. "The Heir is crafty indeed."

"So now we know what the monster is. We know that the Heir must be a Parselmouth, but we don't know who it is or where the entrance to the Chamber is," Harry summarized.

"We should tell the teachers what we know!" Hermione stated.

Daphne looked at her incredulously. "And what would we say? 'Oh, Harry here's a Parselmouth, and he asked his magical snake that he keeps hidden away using his Metamorphmagus powers what the creature was, and the snake told Harry that it was a Basilisk using the plumbing to navigate Hogwarts'?"

Hermione blushed in embarrassment. "But the students and teachers have to be warned somehow!" she insisted. "There may be deaths next time!"

"How about an anonymous note?" Theo suggested.

"That'd be hard to pull off," Harry reminded him. "Our handwriting is pretty easy to recognize, especially for teachers who grade our work all the time."

"What if one of us wrote using our non-dominant hand?" Hermione asked. "That should be different enough to keep us anonymous."

"I'll do it," Harry volunteered. "I'm ok with my left hand, but I always write with my right hand."

So, fifteen minutes later, Hermione took the note Harry had written and sent it off with a school owl – Harry was afraid that if he sent it off, Hedwig would be upset with him. The note read thusly:

_Headmaster Dumbledore,_

_The monster within the Chamber of Secrets is a Basilisk. The reason the cat got Petrified was because it saw the Basilisk's eyes in a reflection of the water. It's using the plumbing to get around the school. Location of the Chamber of Secrets and identity of Heir of Slytherin still unknown. _

It was addressed to Dumbledore for a very simple reason. Despite the fact that Dumbledore was a manipulative bastard, he was still Headmaster. To send it to a lesser teacher would make Dumbledore suspect that someone knew of his cruel manipulations.

That night, Dumbledore received the owl and read the note with a perplexed look on his face. "I don't recognize the handwriting…" Dumbledore mused. _Let's see if I can figure this out, then. The "Headmaster" aspect means that it's a student, past or present, that holds respect for me. That excludes most of Slytherin house, with the exception of Harry Potter and his friends. But it couldn't be them; Harry would surely confess it to me personally to make me proud. _

Dumbledore took a second look at the actual message. _A Basilisk? That makes sense… it's known as the King of Serpents, and Slytherin likely would have wanted the most powerful monstrous snake to be the horror within the Chamber. Yet its eyes are deadly, not meant to Petrify… oh? Through a reflection? Yes, that would make the glare's magic weaken, so it's conceivable that a Basilisk could Petrify. Using the plumbing to get around? How ingenious! It fits with the last time the Chamber was opened as well… _

Dumbledore interlocked his fingers together with a pensive expression. _The writer of this note must be very intelligent, perhaps a Ravenclaw, to have made the connection between the fact that only descendants of Slytherins are Parselmouths and the Chamber of Secrets. From there it is a simple leap to look for the most powerful of serpents. The idea of the plumbing is absolute genius; that solves the mystery of how the monster was getting around unseen. In fact, it's almost as though the writer has access to the knowledge of the last time Chamber of Secrets opened. _

Dumbledore rubbed his temples. _That would suggest a student whose father or mother had extensive knowledge of what happened, or whose grandparents lived it. There can't be many of those left; most of that age group were killed during Tom's reign of terror…ah, Augusta Longbottom comes to mind, but young Neville, unless he's suddenly developed a spine and some brains, cannot be the author of the note. _

_But what if the author had allies helping? A smart one with Neville's information could possibly work it out… and if I recall correctly, Dean Thomas has an impressive skill at forgery. However, Dean, too, is a Gryffindor, and more interested in playing Gobstones than working out mysteries of intelligence. On the other hand, Hermione Granger is surprisingly intelligent, and she is a Gryffindor as well, _Dumbledore thought triumphantly.

Something kept nagging at him, however, until Dumbledore managed to pin down the thought. _Hermione and Neville may get along well, but Dean Thomas is not nearly so tolerant of her ever since she began associating with Harry. _

Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, frowning. _Oh, why am I even bothering to try to work it out when I can simply use Legilimency on the students? I'll find out soon enough. In the meantime, I should make use of this information. _

Dumbledore walked over to his fire and tossed in some Floo powder. "Severus Snape!"

The next day at dinner, Dumbledore stood up to address the entire school. The students almost instantly quieted. "As you all know, there was an incident little more than a week past in which there was a message claiming that the Chamber of Secrets has been opened. For those of you who have read or heard the legend, you know that there is some sort of creature within. I believe that we have identified the creature. It is a Basilisk."

Screams erupted throughout the entire hall from the elder students who had either read about or heard about the gigantic lethal snake. After a few moments, Dumbledore raised a hand to restore the silence. "Our intelligence believes that the Basilisk is making its way through the school through the plumbing system, so no area is safe. The most devastating part of the Basilisk is its eyes, which can kill by simply locking eyes with you." Most students looked very pale at this point. "However, looking at it through a reflection will merely result in Petrification, which we can cure with the Mandragora Potion. For your own safety, please carry a mirror at all times and use it to look around a corner. Furthermore, each teacher will be personally escorting you to your classes and meals until the Heir of Slytherin can be found and stopped.

"As for the Heir, I need your help." There were murmurs of shock at this. "Despite what you may think, not even I am infallible. I cannot be everywhere at once, nor do I know everything." _Yes, _Dumbledore thought to himself. _Just keep on playing the old grandfatherly card. _"To control the Basilisk requires the use of Parseltongue, the art of snake-speaking. If any student sees another making hissing and spitting sounds, please alert a teacher immediately. The sooner this threat is taken care of, the sooner we can return to our normal daily lives." _There are only two possibilities: Harry Potter, and the Heir. Harry is almost definitely a Parselmouth, judging from the fact that he heard the Basilisk heading off to its victim. He simply hasn't had the opportunity to talk to a snake. And when he does, the entire school will think him the Heir, making it so much easier for me to put myself in a position as his guide and trusted counselor. _

Dumbledore repressed the urge to grin evilly as he prepared for his next public announcement. "As my colleague Professor Gilderoy Lockhart pointed out to me last night" – Dumbledore had manipulated him into saying, rather, but the great idiot stood up and bowed proudly – "the Heir may attack anyone personally with Dark magic, and so there is a new mandatory club headed jointly by Professors Lockhart and Snape: Dueling Club! In this club you will take everything you have learned about magic and learn to employ it to your advantage. Thank you for your attention, and enjoy the remainder of your meal."

Dinner continued as usual, but Severus Snape was not enjoying it. Instead, he was thinking very deeply. He, too, had made the connection that Potter was a Parselmouth from his admission of hearing a voice no one else could and from the discovery of the identity of the Basilisk. Dumbledore had, however, arranged for Snape to match up Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter, since they were well known as enemies. Snape was then to teach Draco _Serpensortia_, the Snake Summoning Charm.

_The way the Headmaster is operating, it's like he WANTS the school to despise Potter, _Snape realized. It was all too easy for him to figure out why, as well. He'd known for quite some time that Dumbledore wished to fully control Potter for some reason. Thankfully, Snape had managed to conceal the fact that Potter had somehow countered Dumbledore's Memory Charm, and he was surprised to find that Potter and his friends had managed to keep that knowledge secret as well.

Snape had checked Potter for Occlumency during every class, and without fail always encountered only the most meager of natural defenses before finding memories. Not only that, but he saw what he recognized as fake memories that Dumbledore had implanted. _Somehow, Potter has combined the failed Memory Charm into his own memories to repress his original ones, _Snape eventually realized.

Now, during dinner, Snape was wondering whether he should warn Potter. On one hand, during that last announcement, he should know better than to speak Parseltongue. On the other hand, it could be that Potter didn't know about his gift. Snape suppressed a snort at the thought. _Of course he should know about his gift! He's a Slytherin! But it would be a sign of good faith to tell him what will happen…and that will help towards my debt to his father. _

That settled it. Snape was going to tell Potter about the plot against him. His Unbreakable Vow of loyalty to Dumbledore didn't prohibit telling of Snape's part of the plan as long as Dumbledore himself didn't say otherwise.

That night, Harry noticed a new posting on the message board in Slytherin. The Dueling Club had grouped the first through third years together, and the fourth through seventh years together, and the first group had its first meeting the next day, directly after classes. After that, the groups were to alternate days. _Figures, _Harry thought to himself. _Hopefully Snape'll balance out Lockhart and make this a good club. _

The next day, during Potions, Snape was being his usual self, belittling the Gryffindors when he found an opportunity, but at the same time giving subtle hints on how to make their potions better. Hermione caught them as usual and whispered them in layman format to her Gryffindor peers, who had learned by now to listen to her when it came to class.

"Potter, stay after class to discuss your potion," Snape ordered as he passed by Harry's desk.

"Yes Professor." As ordered, Harry remained after the bell rang, and approached the desk. Snape hurriedly cast a Silencing Charm and Imperturbable Charm on the door, followed closely by an advanced locking charm.

"There, now we will not be disturbed," Snape said in satisfaction. "Potter, there is something I must tell you."

Harry was at full attention. "What is it, sir?"

"I have been ordered to pair you and Draco Malfoy together in the dueling club today and tell him to use _Serpensortia _on you."

"_Serpensortia?_"

"It is a charm that will summon a snake. The more magic that goes into it, the more dangerous the snake," Snape explained.

Harry quickly made the connection. "Someone knows and wants to reveal my status as a Parselmouth," he said aloud. "Who?"

"I cannot say," Snape said, gritting his teeth. Even approaching this subject was a strain due to the Unbreakable Vow.

Harry looked at him piercingly. _Surely Snape would tell me if he could. He looks as if he's in physical pain even as we talk about it, though. But what could a mere discussion do? _Harry was suddenly reminded of the last time Snape had pulled him aside in private to tell him of the Memory Charm Dumbledore had placed on him. _Wait a minute, Snape said he was forbidden to speak of it. That means… he's sworn not to talk of it! _Harry's eyes widened. "It's a vow, isn't it? No, don't answer that," Harry quickly added. "No need for you to hurt yourself further."

Snape's mouth curled into a small smirk of triumph. "Quite perceptive, Potter." _He is a true Slytherin. Cunning and intelligent. Let's see if he can work out who holds me to it._

Harry began pacing back and forth, and was suddenly struck by an idea. "You can't reveal who _is _behind the vow, but can you deny people who aren't?"

Snape thought for a moment before nodding. Dumbledore hadn't said anything about people who had figured out the vow, and so that was fine. "Whenever you're ready, Potter."

"Are you bound to someone under the age of fifty?" Harry first asked.

"No." _Excellent line of questioning, _Snape thought to himself smugly. _With that one question, he was able to eliminate almost everyone he knows. _

"Eighty?"

"No."

"One hundred?"

"No."

Harry didn't know many people over the age of one hundred years old. The only person he did know was Dumbledore. "Is it someone I know?"

"Yes." _He's close, _Snape thought triumphantly.

"Is it Dumbledore?"

"…" Snape kept silent, thereby confirming Harry's suspicions.

"That conniving old coot!" Harry yelled in frustration. "You've been following his orders for how long?"

"…" Snape still couldn't discuss it, as Harry had phrased it to incriminate Dumbledore.

Harry blinked, then realized the position he had put Snape in. "OK, how long have you been forced to take orders from people with long, white beards?"

That was more general, so Snape was able to answer. "Thirteen years."

_Less than a year before I was born, _Harry worked out. "Can you tell me the reason you took the vow?"

Snape slowly nodded and reached one hand to his left arm. He pulled his sleeve back and showed Harry his left forearm. On it was a mark – _a tattoo? _Harry thought – of a skull, its jaws open wide as a snake emerged from it as a tongue. "This is the Dark Mark, the brand the Dark Lord used to use to call his followers to him and create terror in the hearts of men. I'm ashamed to say, I used to be one of his most avid followers."

Harry's eyes narrowed. _An old follower of Voldemort? But he said "used to be." _"I assume you switched sides before the war ended?"

Snape nodded tiredly, shame showing clearly on his face. "I had just gotten my Mastery for Potion-making, and the Dark Lord lured me in with promises of a new lab and fresh ingredients with all the time in the world to create and test new potions. He told me he was working to unify the wizarding world, to make it stronger than ever by cleansing the current government.

"I foolishly believed him, and started making potions for him. At first it was all nice and simple: a few dozen Pepper-Up potions there, a Rejuvenation Draught there, nothing terribly harmful at all. I had plenty of time on the side, so I worked on my best idea yet: a way to make werewolves harmless during their monthly transformations, to keep their sanity under the presence of the full moon. I had been inspired by an incident that happened a few years past, but I'll tell you about it later.

"After almost a year of hard work, I finally did it. I had developed the Wolfsbane Potion and successfully put myself in history books for a ground-breaking new development in Potion-making." Snape sounded almost nostalgic at this point. "I was so happy, especially when the Dark Lord asked me to make as much of it as I could, providing all the ingredients himself. 'The werewolves will now definitely support us!' he told me. 'You, Severus, will be honored greatly after we complete reunifying the wizarding world! You have bridged the gap between wizards and werewolves!'

"The Dark Lord was so pleased, he invited me to come along to the demonstration the following full moon, where he had taken fifteen werewolves, all dosed with Wolfsbane. But when I went, I saw horrors, horrors beyond anything I'd seen before, committed by those monsters. They were in full control, I could see it in their eyes, and the Dark Lord was laughing as they ripped and tore through an entire Muggle orphanage." Snape looked particularly sickened. So did Harry. Quetzalcoatl found himself in the interesting situation of being ill at the images but not having a body to throw up with.

"After returning to my home and being violently sick, I realized that I had two options: I could continue on serving the Dark Lord and forgo my morals forever, or I could switch sides. That night, I contacted Dumbledore and we made a deal, resulting in our current situation," Snape concluded, rolling down his sleeve to cover his arm once more.

Harry nodded. "I understand. Thank you for telling me."

"You deserved to know," Snape answered, his voice returning to its usual tone of cool indifference as he checked the clock. "You have Dueling Club in an hour. Leave me; I have Potions to brew."

Harry left with a new understanding of the strict and harsh Potions Master. When he arrived at the Slytherin Common Room, he was very quickly jumped on by his friends, who were very curious what Snape had wanted. "It is not my secret to tell," Harry said simply, and his four friends backed off, knowing that Harry's sense of honor would keep him from telling anyone unless absolutely necessary.

Harry looked through his wardrobe and noted with a frown that he didn't have any wizarding dueling robes. _They're probably more inhibiting anyway, more formal and flashy than anything else, _Harry reasoned as he noticed that no one else was changing into dueling robes either. _I suppose they're not necessary. _

_:I would imagine not. After all, this is a club, not a formal duel,: _Quetzalcoatl reminded Harry.

_I just wish I knew who the Heir was! _Harry thought desperately. _Or where the Chamber of Secrets is so we can get rid of the main threat! _

_:That is why we must keep searching.: _

_If I could use Scan without delaying my progress with wizarding magic, I'd be Scanning everyone right now and seeing who the Heir is! _Harry sighed in frustration. _The spells are hard as they are right now. I can't afford to halt my progress; it'll make me vulnerable. _

_:Do not worry. Next year you'll be able to use Beginner level spells without slowing down your magical progress.: _

_That doesn't help me in the here and now, _Harry snapped. He was instantly apologetic. _Sorry, I shouldn't take it out on you. It's just so frustrating, keeping myself from casting Terran spells._

_:There is no need to apologize. I was expecting it a while ago, actually.:_

_Still, I'm sorry._

_:Apology accepted, then.:_

Harry did some homework before heading down to the Great Hall with the rest of the first through third years for the Dueling Club. Lockhart and Snape were already there, waiting for everyone to come through.

"Ah, you're all here!" Lockhart said joyfully from atop something in the center; the House tables had been moved aside and a dueling platform was created in the middle of the room. "Now, here you'll learn the noble art of dueling! Professor Snape here was kind enough to volunteer to be my assistant in this club…"

Snape turned to glare at Lockhart so hatefully that Harry wondered how Lockhart wasn't at least scared. _Must be the buffoon factor working for him. _"Perhaps a demonstration is in order?" Snape asked in a sleek voice.

Lockhart beamed. "Indeed! Everyone, please watch as we demonstrate a short duel." He and Snape faced each other and drew their wands in front of their face. Then, as one, they turned away from each other. "Now we walk three paces," Lockhart said to the class, "turn and cast!"

"_Expelliarmus!_" Snape cast quickly as he turned around.

Lockhart made an exaggerated motion with his wand before the spell hit him, sending Lockhart flying back several feet in midair as his wand rose up into the air, where it was promptly snatched by Snape.

"Ah, yes, the Disarming Charm," Lockhart said, brushing himself off. "An excellent idea to show them that, Severus. But I could have blocked with an extra swish…"

_Snape's death glare could rival the Basilisk's,_ Harry thought amusedly as Lockhart suddenly looked a little nervous.

"Right then, pair off with someone in your year and practice the Disarming Charm. Remember, it's _Expelliarmus!_" Lockhart told everyone. "No shields or anything else, just the Disarming Charm."

Theo and Daphne looked at each other and nodded. Blaise and Hermione did the same. Harry repressed a sigh and awaited his fate. "No, I think it's time to break up the Dream Team," Snape said with a sneer. Harry marveled at Snape's ability to act. "Granger, you're with Bulstrode. Nott, you're with Weasley. Greengrass with Finch-Fletchley. Zabini, Crabbe. Potter, you'll be paired up with Malfoy."

Harry saw Draco's smirk and longed to wipe it from his face. "Yes sir." He walked over to Draco.

"On three!" Lockhart said after everyone had a partner. "One, two, three!"

Draco had started on two. "_Expelliarmus!_" he cried.

Harry had expected this, however, and ducked the spell instinctively. "_Expelliarmus!_" he yelled.

Draco dove to the floor. "_Densaugeo!_"

Harry sidestepped the Buck-Tooth Hex and aimed his wand. "_Tarantallegra!_" he cast coldly. "If you stop following the rules, so will I."

Draco was still getting up when his legs started flying everywhere, resulting in him falling on his face. "_Finite Incantatem,_" he spat, pointing his wand at his legs.

At the same moment, Lockhart had noticed the chaos going on all over the Great Hall. "Stop!" he yelled and everyone stopped. He looked around at the newly disheveled students. "Why don't we have a pair step up here and show us what they know?" he asked Snape.

Snape nodded with an evil-looking grin. "Let's have Potter and Malfoy."

Lockhart beamed as he nodded. "Come on up, boys."

They got up on opposite ends of the stage and faced each other. Snape was busy whispering in Draco's ear, and Harry noticed that Draco began to smirk as though he'd already won.

"Remember, nothing too dangerous," Lockhart said nervously.

Neither Harry nor Draco answered; they were too busy trying to stare the other down. They drew their wands and held them firmly at their sides. "Scared, Potter?" Draco whispered with a sneer.

"You wish," Harry replied.

"Now turn around," Lockhart ordered, "and take three steps. And… begin!"

Harry was naturally faster when Draco wasn't cheating, so he managed to get off the first shot. "_Expelliarmus!_"

Draco wasn't expecting Harry's speed, and was blown back a few feet. Unfortunately, he managed to keep his wand by tightening his grip on it. "_Incendio!_" Harry cast, hoping to catch Draco off guard by setting his robes on fire.

Draco managed to dodge the fire spell and waved his wand. "_Serpensortia!_"

A rather large snake emerged from his wand, one that made Seth wake up from within Harry's arm. _"Harry! That snake is an Inland Taipan! Don't aggravate it; its venom is one of the most potent of Muggle snakes!"_Seth warned hurriedly in a low hiss. No one but Harry heard it under the obviously angry hissing of the Inland Taipan.

"_Humans! Humans everywhere with pointy sticks!"_ the Taipan was hissing in alarm as everyone drew their wands reflexively.

"Don't worry, everyone," Lockhart said in a grandiose fashion. "I'll take care of it." He whipped his wand and flicked it at the snake, sending it flying about thirty feet straight up in the air before it fell back down in almost exactly the same spot.

"_Stupid human! Fear, I smell fear! Where is it?"_

Harry quickly noticed where its head had jerked to face one of the Ravenclaws. He quickly ran through his repertoire of spells; he had nothing that would stun or kill a snake instantly. Setting it on fire with _Incendio _was the closest thing he had to a killing spell, and Harry didn't want the snake to bite anyone. _Shit! Well, there is one thing I can do… _"Seth! Attack!" he cried in English, releasing his magical snake from its tattoo state on his arm as he thrust his arm out.

Seth shot out of Harry's sleeve like a cannon and landed almost directly on top of the Inland Taipan. The sudden noise had attracted its attention, and the two stared at each other intently, hissing for a moment. Only Harry knew what they were saying.

"_Back down, Taipan! I serve one who speaks the serpent tongue, and he requires that the humans in this school remain safe."_

"_You small and weak. I crush you!"_

Seth lashed out faster than the eye could see and lodged his fangs in the Taipan's body, unleashing his poison. The Taipan almost immediately slowed to a crawl. _"What you do to me?" _it demanded angrily.

"_I slowed you down," _Seth said smugly.

"Thanks, Seth," Harry said in English. "I'll take it from here. _Incendio._"

"_Agh! Burning!" _The Inland Taipan screamed in pain before it was fully consumed by the flames.

Harry smirked and faced an ashen-faced Draco. "Looks like the tables have turned, Draco. I commend you; I was hoping to keep Seth a secret for a while longer, but all good things must come to an end, I suppose." Seth slithered back to Harry, who picked him up and wrapped him loosely around his neck.

It was then that Snape recognized Seth as the snake that aided Harry in their duel in Diagon Alley prior to Harry's first year. _Where was he hiding him? _Snape asked himself curiously, reviewing his memories of what he'd seen before Harry had released him. _It's as if he's not even there… Potter must have learned how to magically conceal that snake of his, Seth he called it. You're full of surprises, Potter. _

"_Serpensortia!_" Draco cast again, this time with a fearful look on his face. He quite obviously didn't want to face Harry and his snake alone. This time, a viper erupted from the wand and was already coiling back to strike, aiming at Justin Finch-Fletchley.

"_Stop right there!" _Harry yelled at it, his focus on speaking English slipping enough to fall into Parseltongue. The viper crumpled down, obeying the orders of the Parselmouth. A second later, Harry realized what he'd done, as did the entire room. "Shit," he muttered in English.

The room instantly began muttering. "He's a Parselmouth!"

"I knew he was evil!"

"No wonder he's good with snakes! The slimy Slytherin!"

"He must be the Heir of Slytherin!"

"Kick him out, break his wand!"

"Being a Parselmouth is evil!"

Harry slapped a hand to his forehead. "Come on! Are you all really that stupid?!" he yelled at the crowd, who instantly shut up. "I just stopped that viper there from attacking a Hufflepuff! How does that make me evil?!" Lockhart, who had backed into a corner when he heard Harry speak Parseltongue, and Snape, who was groaning inside but was smirking on the outside, decided to let Harry speak.

"You spoke Parseltongue!" Ron cried out, his voice full of betrayal.

"So? You've got red hair!" Harry replied, mimicking the tone perfectly. "Just because I can do something doesn't mean I use it to hurt people! Look at you, all of you! You all have wands! All of you can just use _Wingardium Leviosa _to levitate someone over a hundred feet in the air before dropping them!"

Seeing the shock, Harry pushed his advantage. "And what about the Tickling Charm, _Rictusempra? _If you put enough power behind it, you could make someone laugh so hard they can't breathe, which could kill them too!"

Now almost all of the students were looking at each other, not having thought of that before. "We are an armed society!" Harry continued. "I may be a Parselmouth, but that doesn't mean that I'm evil!"

"Then why'd you hide it?" Justin asked in an accusing manner.

"To avoid a situation like this," Harry answered scathingly. "And for your information, those who actually took the time to become close friends with me last year already knew. It's not like it's something to bring up in dinner conversation, especially with the whole 'The Chamber of Secrets is open!' situation. I didn't want to be thought of as Slytherin's Heir."

"Didn't the Headmaster say that a Basilisk is on the loose?" one first year Hufflepuff asked. "Isn't that a snake?"

Instantly the crowd was in an uproar. "I didn't do it!" Harry yelled at them, but there was to be no denying the crowd as they grew still louder. Snape was about to interfere when he could sense Harry's magic gathering. "SILENCE!" he finally bellowed with all of his mighty lung-power. Harry's magic flared and he cast the Terran spell Silence on them all. There was instant silence. Harry took a couple of deep breaths. "Now, listen to me, all of you. I am not the Parselmouth you're looking for. I've been using my skills to try and locate the _other_ Parselmouth, the one controlling the Basilisk, but I haven't found him or her yet. Now, let me tell you just _why_ it's a stupid idea to think that I'm the Heir.

"Firstly, one of my best friends is a _Muggleborn_ named Hermione Granger. Why would I want to kill her?" She waved at Harry, who smiled at her back. "Secondly, my mother was a Muggleborn. It'd be a little hypocritical for me to kill all the Muggleborns, as I wouldn't exist without them. Thirdly, I just stopped that viper –" Harry indicated the viper that was still lying on the floor. "– from attacking Justin. I told it to stop where it was, and it still obeys. Why would I save a halfblood if I hated all those of Muggle descent? Fourthly, the last person who wanted to kill all those of Muggle descent was Voldemort." The crowd gasped. "Oh, get a pair, all of you. Anyway, Voldemort killed my parents. Why would I share views with him?

"Now, I'm going to dispel the Silencing Charm," Harry said, waving his wand. "_Finite Incantatem._ Now, if any of you still think I'm the Heir, you're a bloody idiot."

Despite the fact that the Silence spell had been taken off, no one dared to talk as Harry got off the stage and left the room, followed closely by his friends. The crowd made way for him, giving him a clear path out.

"Do you think they'll leave you alone?" Daphne asked as Theo repressed his chuckles.

"No," Harry said flatly. "There are far too many idiots in there for my speech to actually stop all the rumors. Five Galleons says that a Gryffindor accuses me of setting the snake on Justin by tomorrow night."

"You're on!" Theo said joyfully. "Prepare to cough up those five Galleons!"

Both Harry and Theo were wrong; no less than three Gryffindors had accused him by the next night. Parvati and Lavender had accused him at the same time, followed closely by a third year Gryffindor Harry didn't know. Theo dutifully paid a smug Harry five Galleons, who pocketed them.

Anyone with half a brain and even slightly observant of the school could see that Harry had in a day become the outcast of the school, the scapegoat. The Gryffindors believed that Harry had somehow set the whole thing up to put the blame on someone else. The Hufflepuffs were of two minds; half saw the loyalty that Harry had to his friends, and the other half were so fiercely loyal to their own that they thought Harry was guilty anyway. Thankfully, the Ravenclaws had been reasonable and gave Harry the benefit of the doubt.

Slytherin House, if anything, had turned worse towards Harry. Harry Potter was not only the Boy-Who-Lived, but he also had Slytherin's Gift of Parseltongue, yet Harry refused to use his powers to cleanse the school of the filthy mudbloods! It was a perversion of the most powerful Founder's wishes! Or at least, so they thought.

Harry paid no mind to those who didn't believe him, however. In his mind, they were the fools who failed to see reason. No, Harry's worries were on a certain Headmaster with a long white beard. _What's your next move, old man? _Harry thought calculatingly. _What do you plan to do next?_

_:You are quite lucky your Silence spell didn't affect your magic very much,: _Quetzalcoatl informed him.

_Yeah. _Harry sighed as he strode through the hallways to the library. Suddenly, as he made a corner, he saw something that made him stop and stare. There, in the hallway, were two figures. Nearly Headless Nick, the Gryffindor House Ghost, was no longer his usual silvery-white, but was frozen in expression, his whole spirit a dark grey. Behind him was a terrified Justin Finch-Fletchley on the floor. "Oh man, another attack?" Harry groaned, rushing over. He examined Justin and nodded. "Yeah, he's Petrified too…" He turned to face Nick. "I didn't think a ghost could get Petrified…"

Just then, to Harry's great misfortune, Peeves the Poltergeist emerged from one of the walls. He spotted Nick and his eyes widened. "ATTACK! ANOTHER ATTACK ON THE THIRD FLOOR! NO MAN OR SPIRIT IS SAFE!" Peeves bellowed.

_Just my luck! _Harry couldn't leave now, as otherwise he'd be assumed guilty. The problem was, he'd probably be assumed guilty anyway. People rushed out of all the classrooms and gathered around.

"Caught in the act!" Ernie Macmillan cried, pointing an accusing finger at Harry.

"I just got here!" Harry protested. "I was heading to the library!"

"A likely story!"

"Enough!" a commanding voice bellowed. All eyes turned to face none other than the Headmaster. "Harry Potter, please come with me. Minerva, kindly take care of Sir Nicholas and Mr. Finch-Fletchley."

The hall was quiet as Harry reluctantly followed Dumbledore to his office. He quickly reinforced his Occlumency shields and made sure dozens of recent memories were in his outer persona.

"Fizzing Whizbees," Dumbledore said to the guardian gargoyle, which jumped aside. Harry and Dumbledore then made their way up the stairs, and entered Dumbledore's office.

"I didn't do it!" Harry told him.

"I know you didn't," Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling. "The portraits alerted me a few seconds before Peeves did, and at the time of the attack, you were not there."

Harry sighed in relief. "Do you have any idea who is behind this?"

"I have a suspicion, but I have no idea how he would have gotten past the Hogwarts wards again," Dumbldore said with a frown. "Voldemort's spirit is still out there somewhere."

"Professor, Hagrid told me that Voldemort was once a Hogwarts student. Surely you would have met him?" Harry asked.

Dumbledore nodded slowly. "I did, and tried my best to keep him from turning to the Dark… but alas, my efforts were in vain."

"What was his real name?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "It would do you no good to know that, Harry. You and he were very similar in many aspects, but remember that you are different from him. I will tell you the story behind Voldemort when the time is right." _Which is while we go Horcrux-hunting. There is a Horcrux behind this, I just know it, but who is it possessing? And which Horcrux? _

"Professor?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "I apologize. I was lost in memories for a few moments. The real reason I brought you here was to ask you this: do you have something you want to tell me?"

Harry shook his head. "No, Professor. I just hope we find the Heir soon."

"As do I, Harry. As do I."

Harry left, his mind whirling with thoughts. His experience with Dumbledore's Legilimency had suddenly made him realize something. _I can use Legilimency to scan the minds of people around me! I can find the Heir that way! _Harry could have hit himself for not thinking of it before.

When Harry returned to Slytherin, he was surprised to find that almost all of the Slytherins were in the Common Room, waiting on him. "What the hell?" he asked.

"Congratulations on fooling the Headmaster," one seventh-year said jovially.

"And the rest of the school," another added.

"You sure had everyone fooled!"

"Just keep up the good work, Harry!"

"Soon Hogwarts will be purged of the Mudbloods!"

_Oh my God, _Harry thought in horror. _They think that I actually AM the Heir of Slytherin and that I was just keeping up an act in front of everyone else! _

_:Wait, Harry, you can use this,: _Quetzalcoatl told him. _:Now you can talk to Seth anytime in here without worrying, and the real Heir should become angry that you're taking all the credit.:_

Harry mentally prepared himself and forced a cruel sneer on his face. "Those fools sure were gullible. I'm going to go for a walk and decide on the next victim."

"Make it a Gryffindor!" a few people called out as Harry turned around and left.

_I feel sick for even saying that, _Harry thought.

_:Steady, Harry. You may need to keep up that act for a while.:_

_Oh God, I hope not. It goes against everything I am! I'm cunning, not a cruel murderer! I'm a mercenary, but I only kill when absolutely necessary! _

_:You have stronger morals than many I have known. The best thing to do would be to finish this as quickly as possible.:_

_Yeah. _Harry sighed as he passed by Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. _Hmm? The floor's flooded again? _

_:Why not see what she's upset about?:_

_Why not? _Harry agreed as he entered. "Hello, Myrtle. Are you ok?" he asked, not seeing Myrtle anywhere.

The teenage ghost floated out of one of her stalls. "This is a girl's bathroom," she said with a frown at him.

Harry shrugged. "I saw that you flooded the bathroom, so I figured I'd find out what was wrong."

"Come to throw something else at me, have you?" Myrtle accused, her lip pouting as she seemed almost about to cry. "Twenty points for going through my chest, fifty points for through the nose!"

"What, someone's thrown something at you?" Harry asked in disbelief. "Why would someone do that?"

"To make fun of me! 'Oh, Myrtle's dead! She can't feel it if we throw stuff through her!'" Myrtle said in mimicry.

Harry sighed and entered the stall, plucking a slightly soggy book out from the toilet. "Who threw this at you? I'll talk to him or her, whoever it is."

"You will?" Myrtle asked hopefully, then looked even sadder. "I was just in my stall, remembering how I died, and then a book just got thrown over my stall and through my entire body! I didn't see who it was."

"That's too bad," Harry said consolingly. "If you don't mind me asking, how did you die?"

Myrtle looked at Harry in shock. "I was just in my bathroom stall… this one, in fact! Anyways, I was in here, crying because Oliver Hornby was making fun of me with my big glasses, and then I heard a male voice. He was speaking strangely, almost like it was another language. I thought it was Oliver, so I got to my feet and prepared to give him a piece of my mind, but when I got out, the first thing I saw were these terrible big, glowing yellow eyes… and then, I died."

Harry blinked in surprise. "You died just by looking into someone's eyes?"

Myrtle nodded. "That's all I remember before I came back down, determined to haunt Oliver till the day he died. You should have seen his wedding!" she added with an undisguised glee.

"You must have died by looking into a Basilisk's eyes!" Harry realized. "Tell me, how long have you been dead?"

Myrtle thought for a moment. "About fifty years," she finally said. "I sometimes lose track of time, since no one comes in here to visit me."

Harry's excitement was starting to come to the surface. "Was someone arrested for opening the Chamber back then?"

"Not arrested, no," Myrtle replied, sounding pleased to be able to help. "But this big guy was expelled. He was called Hagrid, I think."

Harry's eyes widened, and after making his excuses, ran off to gather his friends, who all rushed off to Hagrid's hut.

"Open the door, Hagrid!" Harry yelled, pounding on the door. "We need to talk to you badly!"

Hagrid opened the door a few seconds later, blinking as he saw Harry and his friends with very, _very_ serious faces. "Harry? What're all yeh doin' here?"

"We need to talk Hagrid, about why you were expelled in your third year," Harry said gravely.

Hagrid sighed and opened the door fully. "I knew that one o' these days, yeh'd be comin' around to ask. Come on in."

After everyone was settled down, Harry decided to start off the conversation. "I know you were expelled in your third year for opening the Chamber of Secrets. What I want to know is why."

Hagrid clenched his fists. "I was framed! Aragog never did nuthin' to nobody!"

"Aragog?" Hermione asked.

"My pet Acromantula," Hagrid said, a tear in his eye.

"You had a _pet Acromantula?!_" Theo asked incredulously.

"I am not surprised," Blaise said dryly.

"I managed ter get him out before I was expelled, though," Hagrid said happily. "He's livin' in the forest now. Even found him a wife!"

Harry frowned. "I've never heard of a spider of any variety having the power to kill without leaving a mark."

"That's cuz there ain't any!" Hagrid said simply.

"Then why'd they expel you?" Harry asked incredulously. "They had no proof!"

"I thought that when the attacks kept on the next year, the Ministry'd realize that and let me finish me education," Hagrid agreed. "But the attacks stopped after I was expelled. The Ministry never took a closer look."

"Typical politics," Harry muttered angrily. "Do you know who the real Heir is?"

"I don't know fer certain if he was the Heir o' Slytherin," Hagrid said slowly, "but the bloke who told Headmaster Dippet was Tom Riddle. Good old Dumbledore though, he managed ter convince Dippet to let me stay on as gamekeeper."

"Tom Riddle, huh?" Daphne repeated thoughtfully. "Looks like we have our next research topic, Hermione."

"You know, Hagrid," Harry said suddenly, "since now we know what the monster of the Chamber is, we can prove to the Ministry that you're not the one who opened it last time! Then you could buy another wand and start learning more magic!"

Hagrid's eyes widened. "Yer right!" he breathed. "Go on, off to the castle with yeh! I have me a letter to write!"

Harry and the others left. "That was a very good thing you did just now," Hermione said softly. "You just made Hagrid very happy."

"Hagrid deserves it," Harry said fervently. "He shouldn't have been expelled in the first place. There are truth serums that could have proven his innocence, but Dumbledore, in all his years as Headmaster, never once tried. Just one more thing to add to his list of injustices."

Harry was quickly going into his brooding mode, as his friends were beginning to call it. "Hey, snap out of it," Daphne said bluntly. "Instead of brooding, let's actually do something about it."

"Yes, let us return to the library with our new topic," Blaise agreed.

Harry nodded. "I've got something I want to check out first, though. I'll meet you at the library."

"See ya," Theo said cheerfully as Harry started walking towards the Common Room, where he had hidden the black book from Myrtle's bathroom. He thought he remembered something, but he had to make sure. He quickened his pace. _If it is, it might be able to show me where the Chamber lies._

Harry reached his room and pulled the diary out of the trunk. He looked at the bottom-right corner, and was gratified to see "T. M. Riddle" in small gold letters. Harry eagerly opened the book, but to his surprise, there was nothing written in it. Grabbing his wand, he tapped the pages. "_Revalo._" Nothing happened, no words appeared. "Huh. Looks like he bought the diary but never used it. Rats, I was really hoping it could help." He set down the diary on the desk. Then Harry stood up abruptly, hoping to quickly join his friends in the library, but he accidentally knocked over one of his ink bottles, which spilled all over the book. "Damn it!"

But then, right before his eyes, the ink was seemingly soaked into the book. _OK, am I seeing things?_

_:No.:_

_So I saw a book absorb a heck of a lot of ink without a splotch?_

_:So it would seem. It is obviously magical.:_

_Hmm… I wonder… _Harry sat back down at his desk, taking out a quill and dipping it in one of his spare ink bottles.

_Hello, my name is Harry Potter. _

There was a pause, and Harry thought he'd been very foolish for a minute, but then the ink was absorbed. Words came up a moment later.

_**Hello, Harry Potter. I am Tom Riddle. How can I help you? **_

Harry was dumbfounded. _A conscious diary? How? _he thought in wonder. He decided to get directly to the point.

_I don't mean to be rude, but I really need some information. The Chamber of Secrets has been opened again, and from what I could find, you were around when it first opened. _

_**Indeed, and I was the one who caught the culprit. Perhaps you would like to see the memory? **_

_No need, I know who was expelled. Rubeus Hagrid. However, I found out that there are no spiders with the power to kill without harming the victim physically, and there are absolutely none with the ability to Petrify without injecting their venom, which should have been detectable. Hagrid had an Acromantula, which was supposed to be the monster of the Chamber, but it wasn't. _

There was a pause. _**I… I didn't realize. All I knew was that Hagrid had a giant spider, and we had no idea what the monster was. The Acromantula was the only thing I could think of, so I reported him. I thought I was right, especially after the attacks stopped when he was expelled. Please send him my apology.**_

_I will. _

_**Do you have any clues as to what the monster really is?**_

_Actually, we know what it is now. It's a Basilisk. _

_**Hey, that makes sense! The girl who died in the bathroom didn't have a mark on her, and a Basilisk can kill with just its sight! **_

_Thankfully, no one's died just yet. There has been a Petrification, though. _

_**How did that happen? **_

_It seems that if you look a Basilisk in the eye through a reflection, the magic weakens enough to just Petrify instead of outright kill. _

_**That's pretty interesting. Any idea who the Heir is, then? **_

_Dumbledore seems to think it was Voldemort, possessing someone._

_**Oh? My last owner told me that Voldemort was dead, killed by you in fact. **_

_No, his spirit's still out there somewhere. I faced off with him again last spring to keep him from the Sorcerer's Stone. Who was your last owner?_

_**Sorry, I never divulge what another's written in this diary. How's the Basilisk getting around?**_

_Through the pipes, apparently. The Heir is pretty smart. What's the M. in your name stand for? _

_**Marvolo. It's my grandfather's name, on my mother's side. **_

_Tom Marvolo Riddle. Nice name. _

_**Thank you. So, do you have a plan on how to locate the Chamber of Secrets? **_

_Simple. After we identify who's being possessed, I follow him or her to it. Anyway, I'll talk to you later. I've got to go meet up with my friends in the library. _

_**OK, until then. **_

Harry closed the diary, his heart pounding as he put it in his trunk. He could feel how the diary swept tendrils of Legilimency into his false persona, and he could sense the evil taint in those tendrils. _At least I got a name. Tom Marvolo Riddle. _

With that in mind, Harry started rushing to the library to meet his friends. _That name is really starting to sound familiar. And that, that really evil magic I could sense… it feels even more familiar. It reminds me of when I faced Voldemort in Quirrel. _

Harry quickened his pace. _Wait a minute, Voldemort isn't actually his real name… could it be an anagram of some sort? Maybe… I'll work it out when I get to the library. _Harry made it to the library, strode right past the librarian and rushed to his friends.

"Hey Harry… whatcha doin'?" Theo asked.

"I have a hunch I need to test," Harry answered, pulling out some ink, a quill and a sheet of parchment. At the top, he wrote the letters in Tom Marvolo Riddle. Then, one by one, he wrote out the word "Voldemort" using letters in that name.

Hermione saw what he was doing. "You think it's an anagram?"

Harry nodded. "But there are still several letters left…"

"Wait, wasn't he often called Lord Voldemort?" Daphne asked.

Harry's eyes widened as he quickly bent over his parchment and wrote the word next to Voldemort. "Only three letters left: I, A, and M."

The five looked at each other, realizing at once. "I am Lord Voldemort," they said in horrified realization.

"Tom Marvolo Riddle," Harry said in a shuddering voice. "I talked to him just a few minutes ago in an enchanted diary. I think he was trying to possess me."

"That diary must be the thing responsible!" Hermione said in equal horror. "Where did you leave it, Harry?"

"In my trunk in the Slytherin dorm!" Harry answered.

"Let's go!" Theo cried.

"We must make haste!" Blaise agreed.

They ran right out of the library, ignoring the yells of Madame Pince to keep it down and to walk in the library. Hermione didn't enter the dorm, as that was forbidden, but she waited outside for Harry and the other Slytherins.

But when the four of them entered the dorm, Harry saw that the trunk had been thrown open, and the diary was gone.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Ha! Harry now knows the truth about Riddle, but he's been exposed as Parselmouth. What's gonna happen next? Things are happening much more quickly than in canon, ne?

Hope this chapter was up to snuff. Read and Review, people!


	4. Secrets of the Chamber

Hey, NeoRyu777 here with another update! Many of the questions I've been recieving, such as "when can Harry use Terran spells again?" and "Where's the portal gonna be?" are answered in this one. But the fun's not over just yet, heh heh. There's an aspect of his own nature that's gonna bite him in the ass.

Disclaimer: J.K.R. owns Harry Potter, not me. If I owned Harry Potter, I'd be living a casually rich life with my girlfriend.

Chapter 4: Secrets of the Chamber

Harry didn't stop cursing for fifteen minutes after discovering that the diary was missing. When they told Hermione, it was a sign of her horrible mood that not only did she fail to reprimand Harry for his foul language, she joined him for a minute.

"OK, enough of the cursing," Daphne ordered as they went outside for some fresh air. "We need to figure out what to do next!"

Harry nodded and calmed down, trying to think logically. "Only a Slytherin could have stolen the diary, but not many would want to, considering how they think I'm the Heir of Slytherin now."

"Perhaps someone wanted to see who your next target was?" Blaise suggested.

"Perhaps," Harry agreed, "but unlikely. We need to find the Heir."

"I have an idea," Theo said abruptly. "Whenever we have some free time, let's split up around Hogwarts and guard different sections! Maybe one of us will see the Heir in action!"

Daphne smacked his head. "And get one of us killed or Petrified? I don't think so!"

Harry patted his Item Bag. "I can use one of my Soft potions to cure Justin's Petrified state. Maybe he'll be able to tell us."

For the lack of a better idea, they agreed. Harry and his friends were outside of the hospital wing's doors just in time to hear someone else talking.

"… second attack today, oh the poor dear."

"The attacks are becoming much more frequent," Dumbledore said gravely. "We must find the Heir and soon! Poppy, has Pomona told you the status of her Mandrakes?"

"They're not nearly mature yet," Madame Pomfrey's voice said sadly. "Pomona said she's going to try and find a special fertilizer she heard about, one that makes plants grow and mature at five times their normal rate."

"I hope she finds it. Where was he found?"

"Not far from the Ravenclaw Common room."

"I see. I shall continue searching for the Chamber."

"Good luck, Albus."

"I believe I shall need it. I suspect only a Parselmouth can locate and open the Chamber."

Dumbledore opened the hospital wing doors and saw Harry and his friends. "Ah, you heard about the attack?"

"No. Who was it?"

"Keith Richards, a Muggleborn Ravenclaw."

Harry sighed. _Poor kid. _"Professor, I was exploring the castle when I found this strange potion in a cupboard. It looks very similar to a picture of what the Mandragora Potion was supposed to look like." He pulled out one of his Soft potions. "Is there a chance we could use it to cure Justin and find out who the Heir is?"

Dumbledore took the potion from Harry and eyed it critically. "It does look like the Mandragora Potion," he agreed, "but it might be wise to see if it will cure the Petrified students first. I shall give this to Professor Snape, and he'll analyze it. Was there any more where you found it?"

"No, just the one," Harry lied. _I'll be damned if I'm going to show you my stock of Terran potions! _

"A pity. I shall deliver this to Professor Snape immediately."

That was in the middle of November. There had been two more attacks in the past two weeks: a Hufflepuff, and a fifth year Gryffindor had been Petrified. Harry knew he had to find the Heir and fast. Harry's Legilimency scans had not managed to find who had the diary. Whoever had it was being very careful now.

At the end of November, Harry talked to Snape about the Soft potion. "So, how's the potion analysis coming?"

Snape rubbed his brows. "It's not coming along well at all. It's almost as though it uses none of the standard potion ingredients!"

"Will you trust me if I told you that it will cure Petrification? I have experience with this potion before."

Snape looked at Harry before nodding. "I shall tell Dumbledore immediately."

The next day, Snape informed Harry that Dumbledore had refused to use the potion on the grounds of Snape was unable to decipher the ingredients, giving it an unknown effect. Harry nodded in understanding. Apparently Dumbledore had his good points. He was wise in protecting the school, but it seemed he had a blind spot for Harry.

Harry was walking outside with his friends for some fresh air, enjoying the wintry cold, when he spotted people at Hagrid's hut. "Hey, there's something going on over at Hagrid's! Come on!" He ran off, leaving his friends to try and catch up. Harry's weighted clothes slowed him down quite a bit, but he was still able to run at a fairly fast speed.

Harry and the others got there in time to hear a conversation finish.

"… public is demanding that something be done. And Hagrid, your record is against you."

"But I didn't do it! I even set yeh a letter with the proof o' how I didn't!"

"Yes, yes, Hagrid, we know you're not a Parselmouth, but the fact remains you are the only one apart from the current teachers to have lived through the experience, and you were expelled for it."

A pause. "Where'm I gonna go? Please, anywhere but Azkaban!" Hagrid's voice was horrified.

"Don't worry Hagrid, it won't be for long. Maybe a month or two while we get all this cleared up."

Harry couldn't take it anymore. Someone was arresting Hagrid for no good reason! He slammed open the door with an open palm, emerald eyes blazing. There was Hagrid, Lucius Malfoy, Dumbledore and a short man wearing a bowler hat. He recognized the man with a bowler hat as Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic. "You will not arrest Hagrid," Harry said angrily. "You have no evidence whatsoever, and you cannot simply disregard the law."

"Now see here…!"

"No, YOU see here!" Harry raised his voice above Fudge's. "If you arrest Hagrid, you'll be meeting my law-wizards in court for abusing your power and disregard for the law!" This was a bluff; Harry didn't have any law-wizards yet, but now Harry fully intended to get some. "Should be an interesting show," Harry continued, his voice almost pleasant now as he saw Fudge's nervous face. "Minister of Magic arresting people for no reason, throwing them in Azkaban without a trial… I wonder how many others you've done this to… ah, I can _just _see the papers now."

"Perhaps we can come to some sort of arrangement?" Fudge asked, sweating.

"I don't think so," Harry replied coldly. "Now, if you were a smart man – which I'm beginning to doubt – you'd leave now, and think very carefully before you start arresting innocent men. If you do, I might just consider forgetting this ever happened."

Fudge nodded quickly. "Gentlemen," he said hastily in farewell before he fairly flew out of the hut.

Lucius Malfoy cleared his throat. "Now that our esteemed Minister has taken his leave, it is time for me to do what I came here to do." He pulled out a paper. "The school board is calling for you to step down. You have proven yourself unable to protect our future, our children. The board will assign someone else the position of Headmaster for next semester, and your deputy will handle the school until then. As you can see, these orders have all twelve signatures."

Dumbledore nodded. "I see. Well, if the board wants me to step down, then of course I shall oblige them. Who am I to disregard the will of the people? But, I think you'll find that I will never truly be gone, not while there are those still loyal to me. Those who seek help need only to ask."

He left, and Hagrid was looking at Dumbledore's back in shock. He turned to face Lucius. "Yeh can't do that! Dumbledore's the only thing keepin' the Heir from killin'!"

Lucius didn't even bother to answer. He just left, following Dumbledore. Harry was of mixed feelings. It was true that he had some differences with the manipulative old man, but Dumbledore was extraordinarily powerful, and it was quite likely his presence had been keeping the Heir from attacking too often. _Things are about to go from bad to worse. _

_I hate it when I'm right. _It was early December, a mere week and a half after Dumbledore's departure, and there had already been three attacks. Cho Chang from Ravenclaw, Ernie MacMillan from Hufflepuff and a fifth year Gryffindor had all been Petrified. Almost everyone had signed the form to go back to their families over break, obviously wanting to get away from the dangerous place that Hogwarts was right now.

McGonagall had taken over Dumbledore's duties while he was away, and the strain on her was clearly showing. She had bags under her eyes from no sleep, trying to juggle her classes, Headmaster duties, and finding the Heir of Slytherin. Flitwick was helping, but there was only so much he could do. Lockhart was no help at all.

Harry was still searching everywhere he could think of for the Chamber and scanning everyone with Legilimency to find the Heir, to no avail. He was even openly using Seth, telling it in English in public to try and find someone who smelled like a Basilisk, but even Seth couldn't find the Heir.

Harry suddenly heard a scream from down the halls. He rushed over as fast as his weighted legs could carry him, and his heart caught in his throat. There, on the floor, was the Petrified form of Hermione. There was already a crowd, so Harry was thankfully safe from the accusations that he did it. Above her was another message written in blood. "Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever," Harry read out loud. "Who else is missing?" he yelled to the crowd, who fell silent. "Who's missing?!"

Four red-heads immediately looked at Harry. "Potter!" they yelled in unison. Fred and George linked arms with Harry, and took him to a corner.

"You're coming with us," Percy said coldly.

"What's going on?" Harry asked.

"Ginny's the one missing," Ron said in a voice that screamed desperation. "I know you and I have had our differences, but please, help us save her!"

"I would, if I knew where the Chamber of Secrets was!" Harry answered. "I mean, only one person died last time, and that was Myrtle… in her stall… no fucking way… how could we have been so blind?" _Myrtle should know!_

"What?" Fred asked.

"Myrtle died in her stall in the girl's bathroom, where the Heir of Slytherin and the Basilisk killed her! The entrance must be in there somewhere!" Harry said quickly. _It's the best guess we have! _"Daphne! Blaise! Theo!" The three Slytherins, who were standing away from the crowd, talking in low voices, looked up. "Blaise, take care of Hermione! Daphne, Theo, you two are with me! I think we've found the Chamber of Secrets!"

"We're coming too!" the Weasleys said together.

Harry mentally cursed. _That means I won't be able to draw on Quetzalcoatl in battle without giving away my secret. Damn. _"Fine, fine, come on!"

Blaise began levitating Hermione to the hospital wing while Harry's group ran to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. When they reached it, Harry immediately saw Myrtle. "Hey, Myrtle, there's been another attack…"

"And you're looking for the Chamber?" Myrtle asked softly. "Yes, I saw a redhead today speaking strangely to one of the sinks. It opened up."

Harry understood this. "Myrtle, she's being possessed by Tom Riddle's diary. He was the Heir of Slytherin."

Myrtle gasped. "Tommy was the Heir! Oh, I knew I shouldn't have trusted him!"

Harry turned to see his six companions behind him. "Don't just stand there, look at the sinks! Try to find anything related to a snake!"

It took a minute, but finally Ron yelped. "Oi, Potter, I think I found it!"

Harry rushed over. _Did he? Is that a… yes, it is! _"A snake engraving," Harry breathed. "The Heir must have to speak Parseltongue to it to open it up. No wonder no one's ever found it."

"Enough of the awe, Harry, just open it up already!" Daphne snapped, her nerves already frazzled. Harry couldn't blame her. _We're about to open up a Chamber with a giant basilisk ready to kill and eat all of us to save the first girl Weasley in generations from a possessive diary of Lord Voldemort. Could this get any weirder? _

Harry took a deep breath. _"Open up." _

And with that, the sinks began to shift and rearrange, resulting in a large hole. Theo peered down it. "Looks pretty slimy," he commented. "Any chance of some stairs?"

"The slide'll be faster," Harry answered. "Theo, you're first."

He promptly jumped down. "Wheeeeeeeeeee…"

Harry sweat-dropped. _He's enjoying this way too much… _"Daphne, go on."

"Whatever." She jumped down, sliding down without making a sound.

"Weasleys?" Harry asked pointedly.

"I'll stay here in case for when the teachers get here," Percy volunteered. "They'll need to know what's going on."

"We're next!" Fred yelled, and then jumped down. "Yahoo!"

" Bonzai!" George agreed as he jumped in after his twin.

"Weasley?" Harry asked, looking at Ron, who looked rather green, but nodded. Harry was proud of him. _Even afraid, his loyalty to his sister overrides everything. _"Jump on in, then."

Ron took a deep, calming breath, and leapt in. Harry waited a couple of seconds before doing the same.

The slide was long and very, very grimy. Harry shot out of the slide and landed in some mud, near some of the others. Grimacing, he pulled out his wand. "_Scourgify,_" he said irritably, cleaning up his robes a bit. The robes were far too dirty to clean with such a simple spell, but it lightened them up a bit. The others, seeing Harry clean himself up, did the same.

"Come on," Harry ordered, and they were about to go down the long tunnel in front of them when another shape shot out of the slide. When it picked itself up, everyone saw that it wasn't Percy, like they expected, but Gilderoy Lockhart!

"Well done, well done," Lockhart said with a grin, his wand aimed. "You found the Chamber of Secrets."

"Lockhart, what are you doing?" Harry demanded. "We're trying to save someone here!"

"Oh no, Potter, she's already dead," Lockhart said with that same grin. "Or at least, that's what I'll say. Poor Ginny Weasley was already dead by the time I reached her, and in their grief Harry Potter and the Weasleys were driven hopelessly mad, killing Miss Greengrass and Mr. Nott. Then I'll take some spare sheddings of the Basilisk and go back up. I'll be hailed for killing the Basilisk and discovering the Chamber!"

Harry shook his head. "We don't have time to deal with you. _Expelliarmus!_"

Lockhart was surprised by the spell and only just managed to dodge in time. "Say goodbye to your memories! _Obliviate!_" he screamed, putting all of his power into the spell.

A huge white light erupted from Lockhart's wand and started rushing at the seven students, and only one of them knew a way to get out of it. _I hate this. _"REFLECT!" Harry bellowed, creating a shimmering red diamond-like shield around him as he leapt forward to catch the blast.

The _Obliviate _spell hit Harry's Reflect and shot back towards Lockhart, who had no chance against his own spell. The spell rocketed into Lockhart, who slammed into the wall, falling unconscious. The remainder of the spell, the magic, blasted against the wall next to Lockhart. Harry heard the ceiling start crumbling.

"Cave-in!" Harry yelled, rushing forwards. The others took off after him, but suddenly a huge load of boulders fell from the ceiling, effectively blocking their way. Only Harry had managed to get through.

"Damn it!" Harry heard from the other side.

"Harry, get going and save Ginny!" Daphne ordered. "We'll work on digging this out of the way so you can get back!"

"Roger!" Harry said before turning and running. Along the way, he dispelled the weight charms on his clothes and had Quetzalcoatl put his junctions on, resulting in a huge speed increase. The hallway was pretty long, Harry had to admit, but it eventually came to an end in front of a huge set of double doors, guarded by a pair of jade snakes that looked almost lifelike.

Harry glared at the door. _"Open up."_

The double doors opened and Harry could see Ginny in the middle of the room, lying down in her pale-as-moonlight skin. Harry rushed over to her, keeping his senses alert just in case. "Come on, Ginny, wake up," he coaxed.

"She won't wake," a voice said. Harry looked up to see an almost-solid-looking young man, perhaps sixteen or seventeen, with black hair, wearing Slytherin robes.

_:He looks a lot like you,: _Quetzalcoatl commented.

_Now's not the time. _"Who are you?"

"Don't you recognize me? I am Tom Riddle," the figure said.

Harry's eyes narrowed. "Voldemort… at age sixteen?"

The figure looked shocked. "How did you know?"

"I worked it out after you told me your middle name," Harry said coolly. He shook his head. "Lord Voldemort is an anagram of your name."

"Impressive, Harry Potter. The girl won't wake, as I drain her life force and let it become my own. She was foolish, Harry, she poured her soul into me, writing so often. And I fed on it, becoming stronger. Eventually I was able to pour some of my soul back into her…"

"Resulting in possession," Harry finished. "You used her to open the Chamber and release the Basilisk."

Voldemort nodded with a grin. "You are quite clever. The girl told me a lot about you, you know? About how she never thought she'd have a chance with the famous _Boy-Who-Lived_. She told me how you vanquished the future me, and I felt myself wanting to see just how the real thing measures up. Now, let us see who is stronger: the famous Boy-Who-Lived, or the wrath of the Heir of Slytherin, the Dark Lord Voldemort!"

Voldemort raised Ginny's wand and fired a curse silently at Harry, who dodged; the Reflect had worn off only a minute before. "_Expelliarmus!_" Harry countered.

The spell just went right through Voldemort, who laughed. "I am not yet whole, Harry, you cannot hit me!"

"Oh yeah," Harry said grimly, "let's see you try this on for size! _Espiritu expello!_"

It was a spell Harry had located in the library in all his days of research. It was the Spirit Banishing Charm, designed to work on spirits and phantasms of almost any variety. Harry had spent some time to learn it, practicing on Peeves whenever he annoyed him.

A ghostly silver-white spell shot out from Harry's wand and struck Voldemort dead in the chest, sending him flying back several feet. He got up with a scowl, but he seemed to be gaining strength every second. He was slowly becoming less and less transparent.

_I've got to find a way to get rid of Voldemort before he drains Ginny of all her life force! _Harry thought desperately. _Would a Holy work? _

_:If you cast Holy, you'll probably cause another cave-in!: _Quetzalcoatl warned.

"That hurt, Potter. Let's see how you deal with Slytherin's pet, the Basilisk. _Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts Four!" _The Basilisk came out, but Harry didn't bother to shield his eyes from its glare; his junctions made him immune.

"_Attack him!" _Riddle cried

"_Wait!" _Harry spoke up. _"Your master here is just a memory, not the real thing! Why do you serve him?"_

"_He is a descendant of Slytherin, my creator. Thus, Tom Marvolo Riddle is my master. Yet, you also speak the serpent tongue. Are you a descendant as well?"_

Harry paused. _"I don't know. I have not yet been able to trace my ancestry."_

The Basilisk's tongue slithered out, tasting the air. _"An honest answer speaks well of you, young speaker. Where did you acquire the ability to speak the noble tongue?"_

"_I believe it happened when Tom Riddle attacked me as a babe. His Killing Curse was somehow reflected off of me, and when he lost his body, he transferred the ability to speak to serpents to me."_

"_Why would I attack a babe?" _Riddle spat. _"No babe is that much of a threat to me."_

"_It is if there's a prophecy about it," _Harry replied bluntly. _"I don't know what exactly it says, but I've gathered that I'm supposed to be the savior of the world again."_

The Basilisk appeared outraged and stared at Riddle, who had his head bowed not to see into its eyes. _"You would attack and kill a youngling? You dishonor the Slytherin line!" _

"_His mother was a Muggleborn! He has Muggle blood!" _

"_That does not mean you can kill without mercy!" _the Basilisk argued. _"My creator, Salazar Slytherin, didn't want to take in Muggleborns because he feared they would tell Muggles of the magical world and have them storm the castle. He thought that even if they didn't tell, they would be forced to split from their families, causing more hatred for the magical world from that side!"_

"_Times have changed, miss," _Harry said softly, recognizing the Basilisk's 'voice' as a female. _"The Muggles now believe that magic does not exist. Even if a Muggleborn were to go screaming to the world that magic exists, he or she would be locked away into a facility for crazy people. A Muggleborn no longer has to fear their community or family, and each has the choice to forgo magical education or not. Tom Riddle here right now is killing someone to be brought back to life." _He indicated Ginny, who was turning ever paler. _"Riddle, in his past, has killed hundreds mercilessly and needlessly, in the name of Slytherin. I ask of you, miss, please help me save my friend." _

The Basilisk looked right into Harry's eyes, and Harry lowered his shields. _"Yes… I can see the truth there. Do what must be done."_

"_Accio diary!_" Harry suddenly cried, and the black book zoomed over into Harry's free hand. Before Riddle could react, Harry brought out his gunblade and stabbed it into the diary, which started spurting ink.

Riddle screamed in pain before flashing white and exploding into energy, which settled back into Ginny, who almost instantly regained all of her color. She began to stir.

"_Please, lady, close your eyes!"_

The Basilisk closed her eyes as Ginny sat up, rubbing her eyes blearily. "Huh, where am I?" She looked around and saw Harry and the Basilisk. "Harry! I'm so sorry, I tried to tell you that it was me, Tom was possessing me and…" Ginny broke down and started to cry.

Harry pulled her into an embrace and rubbed her back. "It's ok, it'll all be ok…" After a minute or so, Ginny broke the embrace and saw the Basilisk.

"The Basilisk! It's out!" she screamed.

Harry barely stopped himself from clutching his ears in pain. "Yes, I know. She won't attack anyone who doesn't deserve it."

"_Indeed, I was placed here not to rid the school of Muggleborns, but to protect the school should an enemy attack. I apologize for attacking so many students, but I had no choice. I had to obey Slytherin's edicts, one of which was to obey his Heirs unless one is challenged. Whoever more closely aligns himself with Slytherin's views would be my new master, and that is you, Harry Potter."_

Harry's jaw dropped. So did Ginny's.

"H-H-H-Harry," Ginny stuttered. "Did I just understand the Basilisk?"

"If she said something along the lines of me being her new master, then yes you did understand her."

Ginny fainted. Harry caught her before she fell. _She must have absorbed some of Tom's powers thanks to the frequent possessions, _Harry thought.

"_Now that she is no longer consciously present, there is something more I must tell you," _the Basilisk continued. _"I am the second-in-command and Hydra's contact on Earth, and she keeps in telepathic contact. Hydra believes you worthy of her mark that places you above any other snake-speaker alive. Show me your left hand." _

Harry extended the hand, and the Basilisk leaned over it. A single drop of venom fell from one of her teeth and landed on Harry's hand. Harry refrained from hissing in pain as the venom burned its way onto his hand. When it finished, Harry looked at the back of his hand. It now had a tattoo of a nine-headed snake. It was already fading.

"_To show your superiority, merely will the tattoo to resurface and it will."_

Harry would have bowed, but he was still holding Ginny with his right arm. So instead, he bowed his head as deeply as he could. _"I am greatly honored. Thank you."_

Seth crawled out from Harry's sleeve and bowed its head. _"I, too, am greatly honored to meet the commander in chief of this world." _

"_Ah, it is young Seth, companion to the dimension-traveler,"_ the Basilisk greeted. _"You have done well for yourself, I see. Keep it up, and maybe you'll replace me when I finally die."_

Seth's eyes widened as far as they could go. He was apparently speechless. Thankfully, Harry decided to change the subject. _"Listen, I need to get back to my friends. Thank you very much for helping me. What may I call you?"_

"_You may call me… Sanath. Go, return to your friends." _

Harry nodded, pocketing the once-evil diary before picking Ginny up bridal style. Harry returned to the site of the cave-in, where the Weasleys plus Theo and Daphne had opened a hole for them to exit. Lockhart was still unconscious.

"Ginny!" the three conscious Weasleys yelled as they ran over to Harry.

"She'll be fine," Harry reassured everyone. "She just had a bit of a nasty shock. After I got rid of the thing draining her life force, she found out she had absorbed some of its powers, including the ability to speak Parseltongue."

"She's a Parselmouth now?" Fred and George asked together. Harry nodded. "Hmm. D'ya think she can convince some of the snakes around here to help with pranks?"

Harry couldn't help it. He started laughing. "O-Only you," he said between laughs. "Only you two could think of pranks at a time like this!"

Fred, George, Ron and Theo joined Harry in his laughter, and even Daphne giggled a little – though she'd deny it if Harry ever asked.

Harry suddenly turned serious as he set Ginny down next to Lockhart to rest. "Seriously, we've got a bit of a problem. You remember what I did when this ponce here tried to Memory Charm us?"

"You jumped in front of us, yelling Reflect," Ron said simply. "Why?"

"Well, that was one of my greatest secrets," Harry told him. "No one's supposed to know I can do that. Dumbledore Memory Charmed me my first day of classes in our first year to make me forget everything before Hogwarts. With some help, I broke the charm, but Dumbledore doesn't know. I need him to keep thinking it's in place, and since he can read minds… well, I need to take away those memories."

Ron looked suspicious. "Why would Dumbledore Memory Charm you?"

Harry sighed and looked deep into Ron's eyes, pulling him into one of Harry's memories. When they came out, Ron was shaking in anger. "That bastard!"

"My sentiments exactly," Harry agreed. "So you see, I can't let you remember. You don't know Occlumency."

"I understand," Ron said softly. Fred and George, seeing Ron's sudden maturity, stood beside him at either side, hands on his shoulders in a show of support.

"If it's good enough for him, it's more than good enough for us," Fred said.

"So get on with the Memory Charming!" George finished.

Harry nodded and took a deep breath. "_Obliviate!_"

The three Weasleys were now very disoriented before regaining their balance. Harry had just made them think that Lockhart had made an extravagant flourish, accidentally flipping the wand back towards himself, resulting in a backfiring of the Memory Charm. He had also erased the conversation after they had laughed.

"Let's get back up to Hogwarts," Harry said with a smile, and everyone nodded. Harry picked up Ginny again and carried her while Fred and George dragged Lockhart by the arms.

"Erm, Potter, how are we supposed to get up?" Ron asked, looking at the slide.

Harry felt rather stupid. "I don't know. Um, _up?" _he tried. Nothing happened. _"Stairs?" _

The slide suddenly twisted and morphed, turning into a perfect spiral staircase. Harry sighed in relief. "I just had to say 'Stairs' in Parseltongue." He began climbing up the stairs, only to stop when he suddenly heard some thunking. He turned around to see Fred and George still dragging Lockhart. "Um, guys? Can't you levitate him?"

"Nah, more fun this way," Fred said.

"What my devilishly handsome twin said," George agreed.

"Wait, if I'm devilishly handsome, so are you," Fred pointed out.

"Why, so I am!" George exclaimed in false surprise. Theo started laughing.

Harry rolled his eyes and turned back to climbing the long staircase. Finally, they emerged at the top, where Percy was waiting.

"Ginny!" he cried.

"Hush, she's sleeping!" Harry hissed at him. "She's fine. Anyone else show up?"

"No one," Percy said irritably. He took a second look at them all. "You're all filthy! _Scourgify!_" Percy's cleaning spell helped a bit, but Harry suspected that the grime had gotten too far into the robes to ever fully wash out.

"Give it a rest, Perce," Fred told him. "We've been doing that since we first landed down there. The only thing that could clean it now is a house-elf."

"We should go tell a teacher that Ginny's safe now," Percy said in a relieved tone. "Potter… thank you."

"No problem. I'm not as evil as I look, you know. I _like _helping people." Harry paused. "Usually," he amended.

Percy struggled but couldn't fully hide an amused smirk at Harry's comment. "Let's go find McGonagall. She should be in the Headmaster's office."

Everyone nodded and followed Percy – George sighed and began levitating the still-unconscious Lockhart. Percy, as prefect, knew the password – "Jolly Ranchers" – and they walked up. Harry began frowning. He could sense the unique feline core of McGonagall, but there were also two more people; one was fairly powerful, while the other one had a compressed, tightly coiled feel to it.

They knocked. "Come in!" McGonagall's voice ordered, clipped. When the Weasleys, Harry, Daphne and Theo came in carrying Ginny and Lockhart, her jaw dropped. She blinked several times, trying to make sense of the situation, before finally sitting down in Dumbledore's chair.

Harry instantly recognized the other two people in the room as Arthur and Molly Weasley. He was shocked at discovering that the compressed magic belonged to Arthur, but Harry kept that hidden well. Before he could make any other observations, Molly Weasley had leapt up off her chair and rushed to Ginny, who was still sleeping in Harry's arms. "Ginny!"

Harry smiled. It was good to see the reunification of a family almost lost. It was… cathartic, in a way. _By preventing one family from losing a precious member, my own hurt seems less somehow. _Harry passed Ginny off to the almost hysterical mother, who quieted almost instantly as she held Ginny close. She sat back down next to her husband, and the two of them looked incredibly relieved.

McGonagall cleared her throat. "Would someone mind filling me in on what happened?"

Harry looked around, suddenly feeling several eyes on him. Ron, Fred, George, Percy, Theo and Daphne were all staring at him. "Um, maybe Percy should start with how he and his brothers found out Ginny was missing?" Harry asked weakly.

Harry sighed in relief when the stares turned to the tallest redhead child. "Very well," Percy said formally. "This morning, my brothers and I were trying to find Ginny, as our mother had received no reply to the query if she was going to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas. We asked a few of Ginny's friends in Slytherin, but they told us that when they woke up, Ginny's bed was deserted and quite cold.

"Fred and George confessed to Ron and me that they had a way of finding where she was, and disappeared into their dorm for a few minutes. When they came back out, they looked quite pale. 'She's not on the grounds,' they said.

"Naturally, our first instinct was to find you, Professor, but we first came across the message on the wall, the one that said 'Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever.' That was when we saw Potter, who at the time was quite upset over the Petrification of Hermione Granger. After a brief discussion, the four of us agreed to ask Potter for help; after all, he seemed to be the one with most information, and he is a Parselmouth. We thought he may have a few clues to the location of the Chamber," Percy concluded.

All eyes then turned to Harry, who cleared his throat and swallowed. _I hate being the center of attention… _Harry quickly told the story with as many details as he could, omitting his Reflect spell and the Mark of Hydra. He also left out his use of the gunblade to destroy the diary, instead claiming to have used a long, sharp, jagged stone. "It turns out that Salazar Slytherin actually wasn't that bad of a guy. He discriminated against Muggleborns to keep them safe, in his mind. He didn't want to break up any families by pitting Muggles against a Muggleborn witch or wizard, and he didn't want to risk the location of Hogwarts either. He placed a Basilisk in the Chamber for his Heirs to control to protect Hogwarts, not to purge it. So, I asked the Basilisk to sleep until I call for it. After that, I came back, used Parseltongue to make stairs up the slide, met up with Percy, and we all came here."

Everyone was staring at Harry still, who barely kept himself from shifting uncomfortably. _Look away, come on, focus on something else! _Harry took the mutilated diary out of his pocket and put it on the desk. "This is the diary. Ginny is innocent of all of Tom's acts. But she's got a few things she needs to work out. Since she was possessed so much, part of Tom's power transferred to Ginny. She is a Parselmouth now, like me."

That did the trick; now everyone was focusing on the sleeping form of Ginny. The Weasley parents looked a little concerned, but it was Molly who dissolved the worry. "She's still our little girl, and we don't love her any less for it."

Harry sighed in relief. For a moment, he'd been worried they would disown her or something. McGonagall cleared her throat. "Now that the incident has been dealt with, I shall consult Albus. He will need to know about these new developments."

Just then, almost as though it was cued, a flash of fire erupted behind everyone. It dissipated a moment later, leaving Dumbledore holding onto the feathers of Fawkes. He blinked, slightly confused. _Did I miss something? Why is everyone here? _"Hello, Minerva, Arthur, Molly, Mssrs. Weasley, Mr. Potter, Mr. Nott, Miss Greengrass." He quickly used Legilimency on McGonagall to find out what was happening. _Harry not only found, but went into the Chamber of Secrets already? And he rescued Ginny? I have to see this for myself! _He turned on Harry, reading his memories.

Harry had by now developed a habit of making copies of any new memories for outside of his core Occlumency shields even while doing other things. He had to focus on altering those that needed it, but he'd gotten so proficient at doing so that he only required a few seconds, and he'd changed the Chamber memories during the long climb up the spiral staircase. As a result, Dumbledore saw that Harry had reasoned with the Basilisk before Summoning the diary and stabbing it with a conveniently sharp rock. Then he felt Harry's shock when he found that he was the Basilisk's new master, before leaving with Ginny, joining up with the Weasleys, and coming to the office.

Dumbledore cleared his throat; he had only been in the office for a few seconds. "I see that Miss Weasley is safe and sound. Well done, Mr. Potter. You not only stopped the Heir, but have gained a new ally, though I'll thank you not to call on her unless Hogwarts is under attack."

Harry nodded seriously. "If you don't mind me asking, sir, why are you here? I thought the school board asked you to step down."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled with mirth. "It seems that several of them came to me this morning, telling stories of how Lucius Malfoy threatened their families, and then told me that they felt I should return to my position at Hogwarts."

_The question is, is that real, or did Dumbledore Memory Charm them all? _Harry asked himself. _That does seem like something the Malfoy family would do, but Dumbledore's life of power is here at Hogwarts. _

_:There is no point to this line of questioning,: _Quetzalcoatl asserted. _:Even if Dumbledore did use the Memory Charm, there is no way we could prove it. And we know not to trust Dumbledore anyway.:_

_True enough, _Harry admitted. "Welcome back, sir."

There was an immediate chorus of "Welcome back, Professor." Dumbledore smiled warmly at Harry. _It appears as though my plan to make him dependent on me is working, _Dumbledore thought in satisfaction.

"It is good to be back. Now, if I may ask, what has happened to Gilderoy?" Dumbledore asked, already knowing the answer.

"The git followed us," Ron said angrily. "Then he went on about how he was going to claim the credit for finding the Chamber, killing the Basilisk, and being too late to save Ginny. Then he said something about all of us losing our minds. Since none of us, at the moment, had our wands drawn, he decided to show off."

"Yeah," Fred agreed. "He did a few twirls of his wand, and then yelled '_Obliviate'_."

"But the idiot had accidentally flipped his wand around and hadn't noticed," George added, rolling his eyes. "So his blasted himself into the wall. He hasn't woken up since."

"Oh dear," Dumbledore said with mock concern. He'd known Lockhart was a fraud the moment he met him, thanks to Legilimency. "Slain by your own sword, eh Gilderoy? It looks as though he'll be in the long-term ward of Saint Mungo's to recover his memory. Well, children, it's time you go and clean yourselves up. If I recall correctly from Minerva's reports, all of the Weasleys are going to return home for Christmas?"

"Yes," Mrs. Weasley said firmly.

Mr. Weasley got up. "Harry, thank you for saving our daughter. I would like to invite you to the Burrow for Christmas break."

Harry considered for a moment, but shook his head. "Thank you for the offer; it means a lot. But Christmas should be spent with family. I refuse to intrude on that."

"Are you sure?" Surprisingly, it was Ron who asked. "Listen, Pot – Harry. I'm sorry for doubting you all this time. I let my prejudice against Slytherin blind me to what you're really like. I'm sorry you had to save my sister for me to see that. Maybe we can start over?"

Harry smiled. "Hi, I'm Harry Potter of Slytherin." He extended a hand.

Ron shook it. "Ron Weasley of Gryffindor. Nice to meet you."

"Likewise."

"So, you coming?" Ron asked.

Harry shook his head ruefully. "I'm sorry, Ron, everyone, but I can't. Nothing against you guys, but I have some unfinished business I have to take care of. Besides, Ginny needs her family, not her crush, right now. She may be innocent of everything Tom did, but she may have a hard time coming to terms with what he did in her body. Me being there would only make that worse. Maybe next year, if the offer still stands, I'll take you up on it." Harry looked the Weasleys in the eyes, and saw their acceptance. He felt strangely better seeing that.

"OK, enough of the touch-feely moments!" Daphne blurted. "I feel horrid, and I'm willing to bet I look it too! There's slime in my hair, there's mud all over me! I need a shower, and I'm going to get it if I have to curse the walls down!"

Harry and Theo looked at each other and started laughing. They were shortly joined by everyone still awake. Even McGonagall cracked a smile. "Yeah, I need a shower too," Theo agreed.

"Let's get out of here," Harry said, heading for the door, Theo and Daphne following.

Fred and George shared a glance before facing the Headmaster. "We have to go," Fred said.

"Showers to take…"

"Pranks to plan…"

"Mayhem to create…"

"The usual," they finished together before taking off after Harry's group.

Ron looked at their quickly-retreating backs. He didn't bother to come up with an excuse. "Later, Mum, Dad!"

Dumbledore looked at Percy, his eyes twinkling. "You know, I think, considering what they've just accomplished, that they have earned permission to use the prefect's bathrooms for today. Please inform Miss Greengrass that the girl's password is 'Freshly scented'."

"Yes sir." Percy ran off after the others.

And so, for the first time in many, many years, Gryffindors and Slytherins walked side by side, chatting amiably, bonded by working to save a girl Gryffindor by upbringing, and Slytherin by nature, a Slytherin Weasley, Ginny.

That night, Harry was sliding back towards the Chamber of Secrets. Ginny may have been the tie between the Weasleys and Slytherins, but Harry needed to create the tie between Earth and Terra. He'd finally found a completely private place only he could access unless Voldemort was somehow resurrected, which Harry thought unlikely. _And Ginny's probably not going to want to come back down here, either, after the experience with the diary, _Harry thought to himself grimly.

Harry entered the inner Chamber, the place where he'd seen Sanath, who had returned to bed in the mouth of the statue of Slytherin. He reached the middle. Creating a stable, permanent portal was very tricky. Harry had to create the eight elemental symbols with blood in a circle around the place where the portal was to be. These symbols would then be able to draw magic from around it to power the portal. But the symbols had to be placed in a certain order as well, for balance. Holy and Dark, Fire and Water, Earth and Wind, Lightning and Ice all had to be on opposite sides. Not only that, but the circle had to be progressive, in the sense that each element, going around, seemed to lead to the next.

Finally, Harry worked out the order: Water, Ice, Dark, Earth, Fire, Lightning, Wind, and Holy. Holy was generally centered on peace of mind and healing, so it was only right that Water and Wind were around each side, Wind often symbolizing the mind and Water healing. Water, when frozen, turned to Ice, and winter, with which Ice was associated, had longer nights and shorter days, so Dark followed Ice. Earth was after that, due to the fact that the dead always returned to the Earth for their bodies to be recycled back into nature. Then came Fire, as deep within the Earth there was a core of magma, where Earth and Fire came together and mingled. Lightning was next, as Fire and Wind mixed to form the burning strike from the sky.

Thanks to Odin's gift of knowledge, Harry knew he had to make the portal very large, so as to fully effective in drawing the chaotic portal energies of the world to this one spot. Thankfully, Harry had come prepared for blood – the house-elves had been very helpful in providing the excess blood they had from cooking the large amounts of meat. Of course, Harry had convinced them not to tell anyone.

Harry then proceeded to painstakingly make the eight magical symbols in blood. Once he was certain he had them all correct, now he had to activate them. First, he went to Holy. "Cure." A pink light erupted from Harry's hands, embodying one of Harry's Cure spells, and moved over the symbol. Then, Harry went to Water. "Water." A clear blue started hovering over the symbol. Harry moved onto each element, casting a spell for each. "Blizzard." "Demi." "Quake." "Fire." "Thunder." "Aero."

Once all eight had one of Harry's spells, the spells flashed and sank into their symbols, which began to glow the same light of the spells. Harry stood just outside the circle. "I call upon the eight elements to create a link between the worlds of Earth and Terra! I bid thee, make a portal to Centra Ruins, and may it last until the end of time!"

As Harry finished the incantation, the light of the eight symbols began to swirl together in a spiral, going faster and faster until all eight colors – pink for Holy, blue for Water, light blue for Ice, black for Dark, brown for Earth, red for Fire, white for Lightning, and green for Wind – collided in the center of the circle. There was a great flash of light, and when it cleared, Harry was able to see a very large, light purple wormhole.

Harry let out a relieved smile. _I've done it! _he thought. _Finally, the permanent portal is complete!_

Just then, a figure Harry recognized as Odin stepped through. "I see you finally found a suitable spot," Odin observed with a smile. "Now, to add my personal touch, to make sure the worlds don't get any closer together." He waved his hands for a few moments, muttering under his breath, and the portal flashed white for a moment before returning to its former color. "There, done."

Harry gaped. "I thought that the portal would just make sure monsters don't show up where they're not supposed to!"

Odin shrugged. "I forgot to mention that I could add my own touch as a Guardian Force to make a portal a fixed length. Now the worlds won't merge. You were beginning to push it, Harry, there were random portals opening every now and then, but I was able to quickly kill the creatures about to go through them. If it had kept up much longer, I wouldn't have been able to get them all. Anyway, I'm going back to Centra. Later!"

With that, Odin stepped back through the portal and disappeared. Harry sighed. _"Sanath!"_

"_What is it, Harry?"_

"_Monsters will be appearing every now and then from the portal in the middle of the room. Would you mind taking care of them? Just let me know if you have trouble."_

"_Yes, Harry. This actually solves the problem of finding my food as well, so thank you." _

"_No problem." __Now I can take everyone to Terra for additional training, _Harry thought in satisfaction. He suddenly realized that in the past day he'd cast nine Terran spells, and was promptly horrified. _Quetzacoatl, how's my magical core holding up after all those spells? _

_:Actually, you only actively cast one – the Reflect against the Memory Charm. The rest could be considered similar to trading stock with another SeeD, so that didn't affect the core at all, aside from the day or two required to replenish those spells,: _Quetzalcoatl explained. Harry felt quite relieved. _:However, Reflect, as you know, is an Advanced Level spell. You were nowhere near ready to cast this with no negative effects. Your core's adaptation to wizarding magic has slowed to a crawl.: _

_Shit, what kind of a situation am I looking at? _

_:You would have had a very difficult time in your fourth year,: _Quetzalcoatl responded. _:However, your new bond to Sanath combined with the Mark of Hydra to alleviate these ill effects and even resulted in an overall increase in your magical adaptation speed. The bonding with Sanath forced your core's ability to use wizarding magic to mix with Sanath's innate magic, which mostly fixed the damage from your Reflect spell. The Mark of Hydra created a bridge between your Terran magic and your Earth magic, due to Hydra's presence in all worlds, which resulted in an easier transition to being able to use both.:_

Harry was listening intently, and thought he understood all of this. _So, about when can I use Beginner level Terran spells? _

_:I am uncertain, but it should be sometime over the summer, approximately your birthday. To stay safe, I would suggest early September.:_

_When I start my third year. Got it. _

_:There is… something else…:_

_What is it? _

_:Do you recall how I once told you that your body would never be able to handle one thousand Ultima spells?:_

_Yes. _

_:Well, you currently have 97 Ultima, 124 Flare and 113 Holy spells, as you know,: _Quetzalcoatl said slowly. _:Recall that you replicate these spells over time, but each spell doubles every four months, give or take a week. In essence, in approximately four months, you will have at least twice as many Ultima, Flare and Holy spells than any Terran could stock. According to my observations, at this point you will start feeling great pain by your core being forced to grow even larger. This will only get worse as time goes by. By the time you reach five hundred of each, I believe you will be quite insane.:_

Harry did a quick mental calculation. _But that's only nine months away! _

_:Indeed. I can think of just three ways to keep this from happening. The first and simplest way is to get rid of all the Ultima you have. Of course, this comes with the downside that wherever you do will be absolutely destroyed. The second option is to slowly up the amount of Ultima you can handle by casting two every time you gain three more. The third option is to gain an Animagus form as soon as possible.:_

_What?_

_:By gaining a secondary form, I believe you will be able to divide your stocked spells between your human form and your animal form, provided that it is a magical one. For instance, you could have two hundred Ultima spells, and then divide it up between you and your animal form so you retain one hundred and fifty, and the animal has fifty. As your core doubles your spells slowly, when you hit the point of pain too extreme to take, you can shunt some of your Ultima to your animal form.:_

_How do you know all this?_ Harry asked incredulously.

_:I do not. It is merely a theory; I have no evidence whether it will work or not. Regardless, it is the best option if it does work.:_

Harry almost fell over in shock and disappointment. Nevertheless, Harry had to admit, it was the best option he had available, since he was unwilling to compromise his magical core's adaptation to wizarding magic by casting Ultima. _Looks like I have a lot of work to do; I have to be able to do fifth and sixth year spells before I can complete the transformation. _Harry was a little more than midway through third year Transfiguration, and he was finding it difficult.

As Harry climbed back up the stairs to Myrtle's bathroom, he explained to Seth the situation and asked for an opinion on what he should do. Seth was loosely coiled around his arm at the moment, and was looking back at Harry's face.

"_You have to be comfortable with at least fifth year Transfiguration as fast as you can? I would see McGonagall and try again to get her to teach you." _

Harry nodded in agreement. He had been thinking along similar lines. _"I need something to convince her to teach me, and I can't use my status as the Boy-Who-Lived."_

"_How about the truth?" _Seth suggested.

Harry looked at Seth as though he were nuts. _"She'd never believe me!"_

"_Take her through the portal and use Ultima. She'll believe you then,"_ Seth insisted.

"_Let's say for a moment that I did do that. How would I keep her from telling Dumbledore everything? Or, even if I managed that, how would she shield her mind from Dumbledore? I can't ask her to learn Occlumency without revealing why, and that defeats the whole purpose!" _Harry took a deep breath to calm down.

"_You raise a good point,"_ Seth admitted. _"Good luck."_

"_Thanks, I'm going to need it."_

The next day, Harry informed his friends of what he'd done and his critical situation. Theo and Daphne were both speechless, and Blaise was his normal self.

"I admit to being rather surprised about this turn of events, but there is no time to waste," Blaise said calmly. "It is a rather good thing that you have opened the portal. None of us planned on leaving Hogwarts for Christmas, correct?" After receiving a round of nods, he continued. "We can all go to Terra, then, to further our training. Harry can return here after arranging instructors for us and use this time to request additional instruction from Professors Flitwick and McGonagall."

"Sounds like a plan to me," Harry agreed. "We still have a week until Christmas break, so let's make the most of it." They went to the room that Harry had picked out the year before for training and started practicing a variety of things, from aiming to the speed of casting to a physical workout. Harry used the time practicing with his third year Transfiguration, pushing himself to do better.

That night at dinner, Dumbledore got up to make an announcement. Harry knew full well what it would be, but listened anyway as the Hall grew quiet.

"I am quite pleased to announce something that I'm sure all of you will rejoice over," Dumbledore said pleasantly. "The Chamber of Secrets has been found, and the Basilisk within has been conquered! The Heir was actually one of Voldemort's old possessions taking over the body of one of our students, who shall remain nameless for his or her benefit. The item has been destroyed, and our school is safe again!"

As predicted, the entire Hall jumped up and cheered in relief and happiness. Harry even spotted some Hufflepuffs crying in joy. Some of the Slytherins – the pureblood supremacists – looked a little glum, but Harry didn't spare them a thought. He was just glad this ordeal was over.

Dumbledore raised his hand to quiet the crowd. "I would like to give credit where it is due. It was not I who saved the school, but Harry Potter." All eyes turned to the long-haired, lightning-scarred twelve-year-old. "He managed to piece together the few clues available and found the Chamber of Secrets with the help of the Weasleys and the ghost Myrtle. There, he destroyed the dark object possessing the student, and used his Parseltongue capabilities to convince the Basilisk to sleep until the school needs a protector. He has not only saved us, but helped to protect all future generations that few have ever managed. For that, I honor him. To Harry Potter." He raised his glass.

"To Harry Potter," the Hall echoed, raising their glasses. Only some of the Slytherins didn't raise their glasses. Most of the Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws trusted Dumbledore, and quite bluntly, Harry's actions spoke for him. Ron's newfound friendship with Harry had helped convince the more skeptical students.

Harry didn't particularly care for the attention, but this time, at least, he had actually done something that warranted it. The students were judging him on his own actions. Dumbledore cleared his throat.

"Furthermore, our own Professor Sprout has informed me that the Mandrakes will be ready for harvesting just before Christmas break, and soon the Petrified students will be among us once more!" After a shocked pause, the entire school – again, minus some of the Slytherins – got to their feet and shrieked their joy. After that, everyone was excitedly chatting during dinner, but Harry was thinking of other things.

Since Harry no longer had to worry about the Chamber of Secrets and the rest of the attacks, he was able to focus almost completely on furthering his abilities. When he heard that the Mandrakes had been harvested and brewed into the Mandragora Potion on the last day before winter break, he had instantly gotten up and rushed to the hospital wing just in time to see Hermione being given her dose.

Harry quickly filled her in on everything that had happened, including the new portal and how Lockhart was now in Saint Mungo's. Defense class had been canceled for the rest of the semester, and Dumbledore would be finding a substitute for the remainder of the year. Hermione, as the natural bookworm she was, had read ahead and already knew the spells and potions that the teachers had gone over while she was Petrified.

There were only two things about the whole Chamber of Secrets ordeal that Harry regretted. He wished he had found the diary before and made the connection to Ginny so he could have prevented all the Petrifications, and Harry really regretted not being able to prank Lockhart as much as he'd liked – he was too busy trying to find the Heir to do much more than just simple pranks. _I never did get around to putting his butt on fire. _

Finally, it was time. The students were leaving via the Hogwarts Express. Harry watched them go, excited to finally have some privacy. He and his friends were practically the only Slytherins left in Hogwarts. There were a few recluses, but Harry wasn't worried about them.

Finally, Harry led his friends down to the Chamber of Secrets. They emerged clean – Harry had practiced some of his spells in the Chamber, and ended up cleaning up the place, which took a couple of days – and then approached the large portal.

"How did you make _that?_" Hermione asked, awed.

"See the symbols on the floor glowing different colors?" Harry pointed them out. "Those are the eight elemental symbols that, when in the proper balance, create a stable portal. It's a little complicated…"

"What are the eight elements, then?" Hermione asked pleadingly.

Harry smiled. "Fire, Water, Earth, Ice, Lightning, Wind, Holy and Dark."

Hermione frowned. "Ice is a separate element? Shouldn't that be associated with Water?"

Harry shrugged. "It has less to do with ice and more to do with the extreme cold. Heat is covered with fire."

"Ah," Hermione said in understanding. "What did you mean when you said they had to be in balance?"

Harry grinned; leave it to Hermione to be obsessed with learning every little detail. "Some elements are direct opposites, and as such they have to be on opposite ends of the circle. And because it's a circle, the elements have to be progressive in a sense as well, leading to the next."

"Which ones are opposites?" This time it was Daphne who asked.

"Water and Fire, Holy and Dark, Earth and Wind, Ice and Lightning. Ice is also weak to Fire but strong against Earth, and Lightning is weak to Earth but strong against Water. You'll find that when facing monsters, it helps immensely to have a type advantage on your weapon."

"What?" Hermione asked, confused.

Harry's grin broadened. "You'll find out soon enough. Follow me!" He entered the portal and stepped out in Centra, at the top of the ruins where Odin lived. A few seconds later, his friends had joined him. "Welcome, my friends, to Terra!"

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HA! Harry got effing lucky in that one didn't he? That Reflect spell should've basically stunted his magical growth, but he got saved by the Mark of Hydra. Too bad his magical core is multiplying his spells, or he could relax for a while. But no, now he's gotta become an Animagus, as a SECOND-YEAR! Ha-ha!

So, tell me what you think of this chapter. Read and Review!


	5. To Become an Animagus

NeoRyu777 here again with my usual update. Here's to hoping it's just as good as the previous!

Note: Jem does the disclaimer this time. So, I'm not going to read it until I post it. For any and all people who see it, I DID NOT DO THIS. JemTmTraveler did. Oh, and she wants me to advertise her. So go see her stuff. Especially if you like slash.

Disclaimer: Jem: REVIEW WHORE! NeoRyu777: AM NOT! Jem: Well, now I don't have to review. NeoRyu777: Do so (begins to grovel) Jem: Fiiiiiiiine. But he still doesn't own anything but plot. And I'm the beta so I get to read before y'all! So :-P

Chapter 5: To become an Animagus

After introducing his friends to Odin, Odin was kind enough to open a temporary portal to the forests outside Balamb Garden. Harry knew that Squall and the others were in their fifth year. It was the first possible year for them to graduate, and Harry couldn't wait to see how much they'd improved.

After going through the portal, Harry paused. He'd forgotten to change into his Terran body. It took a moment, but Harry's body changed into what he'd been using in SeeD, right down to the uniform. Seth was no longer a tattoo but was coiled around Harry's left arm, and Harry's gunblade was fully visible. Harry's wand was in his holster.

He looked down at his friends with a smile; it felt good to be back in action. His friends were looking up at him in awe. Theo started throwing a tantrum. "I wanna be able to change into a good-looking almost-six-foot warrior!" he whined.

Harry laughed. "Sorry, Theo, you can't." He suddenly turned solemn. "Stay close. The monsters around here can sense how powerful I am, and most won't attack, but there are always those idiots who try. Once we get to the road, we're safe, got it?"

"Got it," his friends chorused. Harry led them through the forest and the plains, easily killing the occasional monster with a single lightning-fast slice of his gunblade. They reached Balamb Garden after about an hour of walking.

Since it was early winter, all of Balamb was covered in a light snow. Harry pulled his awe-filled friends on inside and then went to the elevator, punching in the third floor. When it opened, Harry was greeted by the familiar sight of Headmaster Cid. "Hey Headmaster Cid!" Harry greeted.

"Harry, is that you?" Cid asked incredulously. "It is! How have you been? Did you find Odin?"

"I found him alright, and returned to my world," Harry assured him. "You were right, Voldemort is still out there as a spirit without a body, but I've been doing a good job of holding him off for the last couple of years."

"Who're your friends?"

"Oh, this is Hermione Granger, Theodore Nott, Daphne Greengrass and Blaise Zabini. Guys, this is Headmaster Cid."

"Hello, Headmaster."

"Greetings, everyone. Harry, are they from your world?"

"Yeah. I've been training them for the last year and a half, and they're ready to start learning their weapon of choice."

Cid frowned. "But why would they need to? Your world is more peaceful than ours, correct?"

"For the time being, yes," Harry admitted, "but it's better to be safe than sorry. Voldemort still exists as a spirit, and as long as that is true, he has a chance to resurrect himself. If that happens, we'll need every warrior we have to take out his followers. Besides, I'd like to give my friends an advantage over any wizard or witch in my world; they focus on using only magic, and having training in another weapon will help them immensely. There is also the possibility that the Sorceress-power will transfer to our world, and then we'll need our own version of SeeD to handle them."

"You make good points, Harry. Very well, your old Instructor, Shugui, will teach them. He will meet you outside the library," Cid said. Harry nodded and took the elevator back downstairs with his friends.

As they stepped out, Daphne decided to ask a question. "Shugui? Isn't he the guy you said was a weapons master?"

Harry nodded. "You name it, he's probably got it. He's the one who taught me how to use a gunblade."

"Which weapons are the best?" Theo asked.

Harry shrugged. "Do you want to strike up close, or hit from far away? Do you want to bludgeon or slice and dice? The best weapon for you is the weapon that does what you want it to. No weapon is better objectively than any other."

"Well put," a familiar voice said approvingly, coming around the bend.

"Shugui!" Harry exclaimed in delight. "How's life treating you, old man?"

Shugui chuckled. "I'm doing well. I see you are too, from your new friends." Shugui looked them over. "So these are the people I'm going to be training? Hmm, they don't look like much."

"They're twelve," Harry said sternly. "Of course their bodies aren't going to be muscle-bound, even if I have been training them when I can over the last year and a half. Besides, they're wearing weights right now."

Shugui looked at Harry for a moment before returning his gaze to the others. "Alright then, come with me to pick out your weapons." After several paces, he realized that Harry wasn't coming. "Harry, is something wrong?"

Harry shook his head. "Sorry, I can't come. I have to return to my world to keep up appearances. I'll be back in time for dinner. Knowing you, they'll be exhausted by then."

Shugui nodded. "Until then."

Harry left, reaching the forest. There, he created a temporary portal to Centra, where he took the permanent portal back to Earth. There, he climbed up the stairs to Myrtle's bathroom – _Why did Slytherin put his Chamber in a GIRL'S bathroom? – _and went to Flitwick's office.

He knocked. "Come in!" Flitwick's high-pitch voice greeted.

"Hello, Professor," Harry said as he came in.

"Harry, Harry, what can I do for you?"

Harry took a deep breath, nervous. He needed Flitwick to help, or else his chances of managing an Animagus form before he went insane would be significantly lowered. He had to be very persuasive. "Professor, I was wondering if you would teach me over the holidays?"

"Sure."

"I mean, I've already learned all of the second and third year charms and I don't want to wait until my fourth year before I can start learning fourth year spells… wait, did you just say 'sure'?" Harry asked, his hearing finally catching up to his brain.

"Indeed I did, Harry. In fact, I was beginning to wonder when you would ask. I may be rather short, but my lack of height has no impact on my observational skills. You are always working on something else in class, yet when called on you perform admirably," Flitwick said excitedly. "I would be delighted to teach you in my spare time."

Harry was shocked. _It was that easy? _He slowly let a grin slide up his face. Inside, Quetzalcoatl noticed that Harry was beginning to open up more easily, even if he was far more mature than any other twelve-year-old.

"Come back in three hours and I should have all of this paperwork graded," Flitwick told Harry. "Then we can get started."

"Thank you, Professor!" Harry replied, feeling both relieved and excited, exiting quickly. Harry didn't go see McGonagall; although he was the second best at Transfiguration in his year – Hermione was the best – he had already asked once the previous year and she had said no, as she didn't want to play favorites.

_Now, what else is necessary? _Harry asked himself silently, reviewing the memory of what McGonagall had said of the Animagus process.

Flashback

"_Professor, how would I go about becoming an Animagus?" _

_McGonagall hesitated, but relented. "I suppose it couldn't hurt to tell you the process. First, you have to brew the Animagus Revealer Potion, which, I feel obligated to tell you, contains several hard-to-get ingredients. The potion takes approximately a month to brew. Once you drink the potion, you will start having visions when you sleep where you must search for your animal. If you fail to find it within a week, you must retake the Animagus Revealer Potion before you can keep searching. It is very common for it to take up to a full month to locate one's animal. It took me almost three weeks, myself."_

"_What happens after you find your animal?" Harry asked excitedly. _

"_Well, then you practice partial transformations," McGonagall continued. "What I mean is just transforming your fingers into claws and such, slowly moving up to the whole hand, and then part of the arm, and so on. It is a slow, painful process, I assure you. Eventually, you reach the point where you can transform fully, but even then the transformation is slow, and you can only hold the form for a short time. To transform faster and hold it longer simply requires practice."_

"_How long does it normally take, altogether?" Harry asked slowly, wary of the answer. _

"_It takes the wizard or witch approximately six months to become an Animagus, after acquiring the ingredients for the potion," McGonagall answered solemnly._

End Flashback

_Six months? Shit! I have to find the procedure for that potion and fast! _Harry thought, now feeling the pressure. He rushed over to the library.

"Madame Pince, I was wondering if you have any books on the Animagus transformation?"

Pince looked at Harry almost affectionately; Harry had been visiting her library almost every day he'd been at Hogwarts, and he'd proven himself to be very respectful of books and the potential learning available. "I'm afraid those are kept in the Restricted Section, Mr. Potter. From what I understand, the reason behind that is simply the danger of irreversible transformations. An Animagus in training should be watched over by a current Animagus to make sure nothing goes wrong."

Harry sighed. "OK, Madame Pince." _Restricted Section, eh? Time to bring out the Invisibility Cloak and do a bit of unauthorized reading! _

He returned to Flitwick at the appointed time, and spent the next hour or so demonstrating his mastery of third year Charms, casting proficiently whatever Flitwick asked. Flitwick was so pleased, he taught Harry a very handy charm, a powerful Locking Charm. It was very difficult for the second year, having to force more magic out than his core was comfortable with, but after half an hour he managed a weak Locking Charm. Flitwick had told him that only practice could then help him with that spell.

He retrieved the exhausted forms of his friends just before dinner. After they ate, they all went to bed, too exhausted to do anything else – except for Harry. He waited until midnight and then donned his Invisibility Cloak, quickly and silently moving through the halls. He stealthily entered the library and made his way to the Restricted Section. "_Lumos._" Harry began browsing, being very careful not to accidentally knock over any books.

Finally, he found a promising book: _Moste Potent Potions. _Being cautious by nature, Harry tapped the book with his wand first. "_Silencio._" Then he took out the book and set it on a nearby table. He began flipping through it until he found exactly what he wanted.

_Animagus Potion. _

_As the name suggests, this potion will show the drinker their Animagus form, by way of making him or her fall into a trance state. _

_Note: After the first Animagus form is achieved, retaking the potion will allow the drinker to see the next one possible._

_Perfect, _Harry thought. He quickly memorized the list of ingredients and the procedure before putting the book back and stealthily returning to his dorm. He had what he needed.

The next day, after breakfast, Harry took his friends back through the portal. Odin agreed to take them to and from Balamb Garden so Harry wouldn't waste his spells. When Harry returned to Earth, he spent a few hours with Flitwick, who patiently taught Harry fourth year spells and theory. After Flitwick called it quits for the day, Harry drafted a letter and went to the Owlery. Hedwig flew down on his shoulder and extended a leg for Harry to attach the letter to.

"I need you to take this to Griphook at Gringotts, please," Harry requested. Hedwig hooted and nipped his ear affectionately before taking off. Harry smiled as he watched her go, and then went to his training room to work on his Transfiguration. He didn't like how he had to force his magic out, but there was nothing for it.

At about dinnertime, a snowy owl arrived at Gringotts, heading towards a certain cart-driver on his dinner break. Griphook was surprised to see such an owl and tentatively opened the letter.

_Griphook, _

_This is Harry Potter. Considering that most of Gringotts doesn't like me for the fact that I have absorbed the strength of many monsters, including Terran goblins, you, Griphook, are the only goblin I can trust. That is why I sent you this letter. I have a request. If I'm talking to the wrong person, or if Gringotts does not provide this service, please let me know or pass it on to someone who can help me._

_I find myself in need of some rare ingredients, but I cannot leave Hogwarts right now. I hereby authorize the usage of funds from my vault to pay for the ingredients on the second parchment and the transfer of an additional 10 of the total charge to the Goblin who finds, buys and sends me said ingredients. _

_Thank you for your time. _

_:Harry James Potter_

Griphook took out the second list and his eyes widened. Some of these ingredients were very rare indeed! Whoever did Harry Potter this favor would suddenly gain a rather large amount of gold. Griphook looked around casually. No one had seen Harry's letter. If Griphook could establish himself as Harry Potter's liaison at Gringotts, he would not only gain a very powerful ally in the Boy-Who-Lived, but he would almost assuredly be moving up in the ranks in Gringotts. _That settles it, _Griphook decided. _I'll do it. _He looked at the snowy owl next to him. "Are you waiting for a reply?" The owl hooted and nodded. "Very well."

Griphook conjured some parchment and wrote a quick reply before tying it to the owl, who took off a moment later. Griphook had some places to visit…

Harry was quite pleased when Hedwig returned with a reply.

_Harry Potter, _

_As a matter of fact Gringotts does provide the service requested. I shall be undertaking this request myself to make sure your ingredients are not sabotaged. You should have your ingredients within two weeks. _

_:Griphook. _

Harry smiled and burned the note with an _Incendio _spell. _Excellent. _He had requested five times the amount of ingredients necessary, just in case he screwed up the first few attempts at the potion, which took a full lunar cycle to brew. He had more than enough money to cover that, he knew.

For Christmas, Harry's friends stayed on Earth so they could exchange gifts. Harry was surprised to receive a rather lumpy package, and was half-tempted to Scan it to find out what it was, but it turned out to be a sweater, knitted in emerald green. There was a note, saying it was from the Weasley family, to let him know that he was accepted at the Burrow anytime.

Harry and his friends spent the day on Earth, catching up a bit. Harry filled them in on what he'd done, and they told Harry about their weapon choices.

Hermione had decided on a whip like Quistis. "I like being able to strike from far away; it allows me to see what my enemies do and then figure out what to do next."

Daphne had chosen to be a short range fighter with two rather short swords that looked more like daggers. They were short, curved and wicked-looking. In essence, they were perfect for her personality: dangerous and wicked when angered.

Theo's weapon of choice was similar to Daphne's, except that he had chosen very thin, very sharp extendable blades that went on the user's wrists. When Theo wanted, he could extend those swords to about two feet past each hand and slash with his arms. It was a bit unorthodox, but then again, Theo always was a little random. His weapon matched his ability to take people by surprise exactly.

Blaise, with his broad build, had chosen a large double-headed axe. It was a little surprising at first, but Harry realized that his weapon corresponded with him as well. Such a heavy weapon would be difficult to quickly keep swinging in combos. It was designed more for very powerful hits at a weak point, which was so perfectly Blaise that Harry almost hit himself for being confused.

On New Year's Eve, Harry received the ingredients from Griphook. Harry thanked him profusely in the letter he sent back and promised that whenever he needed something, he'd send it directly to Griphook.

Harry found it fitting that he received the ingredients on New Year's Eve. With these ingredients, Harry was on the eve of a new power. He planned to begin the potion that night in his training room. It was going to be a very tricky potion to make; some of the ingredients, Harry knew, were very volatile, and adding the wrong amount of an ingredient at a crucial stage could make the whole thing explode. Harry also had to vary the temperatures fairly frequently using the _Calor Minus _and the _Calor Plus _charms. Furthermore, the potion had to be stirred quite a lot each time an ingredient was added, and whether it was clockwise or counterclockwise depended on the phase of the moon.

_No wonder hardly anyone becomes an Animagus, _Harry thought in wonder. _There are far too many ways to screw this one up! _

_:Perhaps we should ask Snape to help? He has proven himself to be at least somewhat trustworthy.:_

Harry considered. Personally, he was against it, simply for security's sake. The fewer people that knew, the less chance his secret would get out. But soon, he knew, the potion would reach critical stages, and Harry wasn't comfortable making the potion by himself. _Fine, _he finally agreed, getting up from one of the seats he had Transfigured in his training room.

A few minutes later, Harry was outside Snape's office. He knocked.

"Come in!" Snape's voice ordered. Harry did so, and saw Snape in the middle of brewing a potion. Snape glanced in Harry's direction before waving his wand. Instantly, the potion seemed to freeze. _A Stasis Charm,_ Harry recognized.

"Mr. Potter, what is it?" Snape asked in an almost irritable tone, drinking some tea he had nearby. He was frustrated that he had been interrupted right in the middle of brewing a Blood-Replenishing Potion.

"I'm brewing Animagus potion," Harry said bluntly. Snape would have known soon enough anyway, had he agreed.

Snape spewed his tea in surprise, and some of it almost made it into his potion. Harry's wand was out in a flash. "_Immobulus!_" Harry barked.

The droplets of tea froze in midair only inches from the surface of the potion. "Thank you, Potter," Snape said calmly, trying to dispel the shivers that went down his spine from the idea of what would have happened if the tea had fallen in the potion. "Perhaps I didn't hear you right. Did you say you were brewing Animagus potion?"

"Yes. It's necessary."

Snape raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

Harry hesitated, trying to word his explanation with minimal information. "The six years I was gone were very busy," Harry said slowly. "My magical core multiplied the effects of something I did, and until recently I was unaware that it's still multiplying. I will go insane within nine months if I do not become an Animagus."

"The odds of you becoming an Animagus at your age are quite small," Snape pointed out. "Your magical core has not yet developed sufficiently to hold the transformation. You do not have enough power."

"You'd be surprised the power I have," Harry said grimly. "Imagine a single spell that can obliterate half of Hogsmeade in a single blast, leaving only a crater, and that it can be cast with a single word." Snape raised an eyebrow, but nodded. "Now imagine that within my core I have a hundred of these and my magical core is still multiplying them." Snape's jaw dropped. "Yeah. Those spells take up space, and my core will either explode or I will go insane from the pain of my core being forced to grow exponentially in a short amount of time. That's why I need the Animagus form. I also need your supervision to make sure I don't accidentally screw it up so badly I fall into a trance so deep I can't climb my way out again."

Snape heard Harry's words, and he also remembered his life debt to Harry's father. _This will for sure pay it off. _"Very well. Where are you brewing it?" Harry told him which abandoned classroom to look for, and Snape nodded. "I will see you tonight at seven o'clock sharp."

"Thank you." Harry turned to leave and had reached the doorway when Snape's voice stopped him.

"What word creates such destruction?" Snape couldn't help but ask.

"Ultima," Harry whispered, and then swept from the room in a way that Snape could only hope to achieve.

At ten minutes until seven o'clock, Harry was waiting in his training room. Snape came five minutes later and took a look around with a raised eyebrow. "I'm just supervising," Snape said flatly. "I'll tell you if you make a mistake, and then I'll put it in stasis until you tell me how to fix it or if it can't be fixed. This is your potion, and the perfect opportunity for you to better yourself in potions-making."

Harry nodded. He felt a lot better knowing that Snape was lending his sharp eyes and cunning mind to watching over his potion. He brought over his table of ingredients, all of them properly stored. He filled his cauldron half-way with water and brought it to a boil. While the water was boiling he prepared the first few ingredients.

After an hour of brewing, he was about to put in the next ingredient when Snape stopped him with an Immobulus charm. "You were about to make a mistake. Tell me what it was and what would have happened had I not stopped you." He put the potion in stasis and undid Harry's immobilization.

Harry looked at everything and then figured it out. "I forgot to turn down the fire to a low simmer. If I had put in the boomslang skin now, then the heat would have stiffened it too much for the rest of the potion to be affected."

Snape nodded and undid the Stasis Charm. Harry lowered the heat to a low simmer and then put in the boomslang skin. Snape had to once correct him on which way he was stirring, but the rest of the session went well. They stopped at the point where the potion needed to simmer for a full day. Snape inspected the color.

"Excellent color," he complimented. "Leave the potion simmering and meet me here at this time tomorrow."

"Yes sir." Harry went to bed and immediately dropped off to sleep, more tired than he had expected to be.

Since the school started again on the fourth of January, Harry still had three days to train with Flitwick. He was a little frustrated with how slow he thought he was in learning the spells. When Harry asked if Flitwick was becoming impatient with how long it took Harry to learn them, Flitwick was astonished.

"Not at all, Harry! You're learning them as fast as some of the fourth years I teach, and you're only in your second year! And your grasp of the theory of spells is quite good! I wouldn't be surprised if you became a Charms Master after you graduate! Not surprising, with Lily as your mother."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"She's was a Charms Mistress, an absolute master of her craft," Flitwick told Harry. "Didn't you know?"

Harry shook his head, biting back a retort. "I hardly know anything about my parents," Harry said softly. "Can you tell me a little about them?"

Flitwick smiled gently and nodded. "Your mother, Lily, was the best of her year, not unlike today's Hermione Granger. She wasn't very popular for quite some time, but when she entered her fourth year, almost all the boys were paying her attention. Of course, young James Potter had been trying to get her to like him since their second year, but Lily thought him too arrogant and big-headed.

"James Potter and Sirius Black were the best of friends ever since their first year. If you saw one, the other was likely around the corner waiting to prank you." Flitwick chuckled. "Oh, those two… they made friends with Remus Lupin halfway in their first year, and Peter Pettigrew a month later, and then the four of them terrorized the school with their pranks for seven years.

"Eventually, James calmed down and stopped trying to impress Lily, seeming to give up in their sixth year. Of course, no one knew why, and that drove Lily mad. She was determined to find out what had made James stop pursuing her. She ranted on the subject in private to me, trying to enlist my help in finding out what had happened. I suspect that she had begun to find it more than a little flattering, but would never tell James to his face.

"So, a little less than a month after James had stopped, Lily stayed up and listened to him and his friends talking. She was shocked when he heard James being calm and rational, and sounding just a little depressed. It seemed that James truly had given up on her, but not because he had stopped liking her. No, apparently it was because James had, in his mind, finally taken the hint that she didn't like him back, and was stepping down to allow someone else the chance to make her happy.

"Lily, after seeing James's true self, decided to give him a shot, and invited him to go to Hogsmeade with her. The rest, as they say, is history," Flitwick finished.

Harry had been listening raptly and silently decided to try and find James's friends. Perhaps they were still alive somewhere. "What kind of work did they go into?"

"Well, I'm not certain if it's true, but I heard that Lily was an Unspeakable for the Department of Mysteries. I do know that she was doing research on a way to stop the Unforgivable Curses, though. James and Sirius became Aurors, the best in their field, and almost unstoppable when working together. Remus, well, he had a condition that made many people not willing to hire him. Peter did some jobs off and on, but he was in the fight against You-Know-Who."

"Are Sirius, Remus and Peter still alive?" Harry asked.

Flitwick's face darkened, an unusual sight for the usually cheerful wizard. "Peter, I'm afraid, is no longer with us, and Sirius Black is in Azkaban for killing him and twelve Muggles with a single curse. Black betrayed James and Lily Potter and told You-Know-Who where they were hiding."

"What? But you just said that Sirius and James were the best of friends!"

Flitwick shook his had. "I don't understand why, but that is what happened. As for Remus, last I heard he had moved to America to start a new life. He had lost everything that Halloween and the next few days, but he was determined to stay and when you were old enough, to talk to you. Remus went across the world trying to find you when you went missing, but after a few years, he finally gave up. We managed to convince him not to kill himself, but I'm not certain if he's still alive or not."

"I'll send him an owl, then," Harry decided. "If I was the straw that broke the camel's back, then he should know that I'm alive."

When he left that afternoon, Harry confronted Quetzalcoatl. _I thought that you said I'd be having trouble in my fourth year? _he asked in an annoyed tone.

_:I honestly thought you would,: _Quetzalcoatl replied. _:But you seem able to break the rules at a whim. It appears as though forcing yourself to cast spells that should be above your level of power forces your core to adapt more quickly.:_

_The "sink or swim" concept, _Harry recognized.

_:Excuse me?:_

_Basically, the analogy goes like this: if you toss a child into a swimming hole or a pool with no prior lessons on how to swim, the child has two options, right? He'll either sink, or he'll learn damn quick how to swim. I've been tossed into the metaphorical deep end, and I'll either go insane or learn to unlock my magic faster. See what I mean? _

_:An interesting, if slightly cruel, analogy. So, you are suggesting that humans are highly adaptive under pressure?: _

_It is humankind's greatest advantage: we can adapt to situations incredibly quickly under strenuous circumstances, provided our essential needs to survive aren't compromised. Along with our creativity, it's the greatest weapon we have._

_:In that case, I may need to recalculate some of my figures.: _

_You go do that. _Harry huffed irritably and drafted a letter for Remus.

_Remus Lupin,_

_This is Harry Potter. I know what you're thinking, that this is someone's twisted idea of a sick joke, but I swear on my father's grave that it's not. I'm back, and I've only just found out about you. I have no idea where you are, but if you're ever in Britain, let me know. Maybe we can meet up sometime? _

Harry searched his memory for something that would be sure to make Remus at least consider the idea that Harry was alive and wanting to see him. Suddenly, he hit the jackpot, with a vague memory of a stag and a bouncing feeling. Harry smiled despite himself. It was a happy memory for him, of that he was sure.

_Well, I really can't remember very much about my childhood before I was left at the Dursleys, but for some reason I remember a stag. Hope that clears some of the suspicion._

_Sincerely, _

_Harry Potter_

Harry went down to the Owlery and called Hedwig to him. "You up for an intercontinental trip, girl?" he asked affectionately. She looked at him in such a way that could only mean "Do you doubt my skills?" Harry chuckled. "I should have known better than to ask." Hedwig hooted an affirmative, looking impossibly smug for an owl with no lips to smirk with. "Right then, this letter is for Remus Lupin. He's supposed to be in America right now, but I'm not certain."

Hedwig blinked her eyes once and extended her leg for Harry to tie the letter to. A minute later, Hedwig flew off. Harry smiled as he watched her go, having no doubt in his mind that Hedwig would find Remus if he was alive. After all, her pride was at stake, and Hedwig was a very prideful owl.

That night was a very delicate stage for the Animagus Potion, it seemed. Three times that night, Snape had barely stopped him from ruining the potion by stirring the wrong way, putting the whole vial of Manticore venom at once when he needed to add half and stir for five minutes before adding the second half, and not grinding the moonstone fine enough.

To make it worse, Snape wouldn't let him continue until Harry was able to tell him just what would have happened had Snape not stopped him in time. But to Harry's surprise, he was actually learning a lot more this way than in class. Snape was forcing Harry to think logically and make him work out how ingredients interacted under different conditions before he could continue, and Harry found he liked this teaching style more than the one Snape normally used in the classroom.

He decided to comment on it on his way out, after the potion was ready to simmer for three days. "You know, Professor, I think this teaching style works a lot better than the one you use in Potions class. I was…"

"…wondering why I don't use it there as well?" Snape finished smoothly. "It's quite simple, Mr. Potter. The way I'm teaching you in there is designed for one-on-one in-depth training, and is the traditional way of teaching an apprentice. I am quite simply not omnipresent; I cannot watch over all of my students' work at once, and as such I cannot catch their mistakes.

"However, as a Potions Master, I am quite skilled at identifying mistakes, as you may have noticed, so I let the students make their mistakes, and then I tell them just what they did wrong in such a way that they won't dare make the mistake again. I became the most hated teacher in school for good reason. I take so many points from Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff to make them try never to be on my bad side, which is more than sufficient motivation for them to do their best in my class." Snape looked down at Harry. "You were the only exception; I took points off of you for the simple reason that you reminded me far too much of your father."

Harry merely nodded. The explanation made sense, and put in this light, Snape seemed like a much better teacher than many would think. "No wonder you're the Head of Slytherin," Harry commented after a few moments.

"Why's that, Mr. Potter?"

"You're so sly and deceptive that you fool every single non-Slytherin in and out of Hogwarts into thinking you're a complete bastard, while at the same time teaching them what they need to know. The irony is astounding."

Snape's lips quirked up into a small smirk at the compliment. "Thank you."

The next night, students arrived just in time for dinner. Harry scanned the teachers' table and frowned; he saw no new teacher. _Dumbledore can't possibly be thinking of simply scrapping Defense Against the Dark Arts, can he? _Harry wondered.

_:Unlikely. Dismissing such an important class would likely raise an uproar. No, he has something else in mind.:_

Dumbledore got up a few moments later, and the hall quieted. "Welcome back, and I do hope you all have emptied your heads rightly over the break so we can fill them back up again. As a few of you have noticed, I'm sure, I was unable to fill the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor on such short notice. As a result, I will be filling in…"

Every single student there looked at each other with wide eyes. _The _Albus Dumbledore, defeater of the Dark Lord Grindelwald, would be _personally _teaching them Defense Against the Dark Arts? It was too good to be true! Even Harry's jaw had dropped in awe.

Unfortunately, that feeling was quite accurate, as Dumbledore's eyes twinkled before continuing. "I will be filling the position for Potions Professor, while Professor Snape becomes your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher for the rest of term."

Shock filled the room. There was a single thought in most of the students' minds. _Oh shit. _It was common knowledge that Snape had been after the Defense post for years and him finally getting it signaled a time of terror, especially for the Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors.

Some Slytherins, who _liked _having Snape teach Potions, as it allowed them to be off the hook most of the time, were horrified at having Dumbledore teach them. That meant that they'd actually have to work for their grade. Other Slytherins, the ones were good at Potions and actually tried hard at it – and these Slytherins were the intelligent ones that held special privileges from Snape – were simultaneously horrified that Dumbledore would be teaching with his strange ability to know everything around him, and pleased that they might be learning something new from Dumbledore. Harry's group, on the other hand, was horrified that Dumbledore would be in the same classroom as them, constantly checking to see their thoughts. That meant a whole new level of work, as they would not only have to brew a potion but keep putting memories and thoughts – real or faked – outside of their Occlumency shield. Only a few Slytherins were glad to be learning from both Snape and Dumbledore.

Shortly put, almost every single Slytherin was horrified along with the rest of the school, but for entirely different reasons. After several moments of shocked silence, Dumbledore smiled, eyes twinkling. "Thank you for your attention, and let the feast begin!"

The next day, Harry and his friends awoke at four-thirty and met outside, as was usual. Usually, at this point, they would have some breakfast, and then Harry would take them into the Chamber of Secrets to go to Terra for training. Unfortunately, with classes today, that was impossible.

None of them wanted to neglect their weapons training, though. So, Harry figured out how to keep working at it: take some firewood from the Forbidden Forest, Transfigure it into wooden copies of their weapons, charm them to be heavier than their actual weapons, and then have them train with those.

When Harry and the others finished Transfiguring their weapons, everyone was looking at him. "What?" Harry asked, confused. "Is there something wrong?"

"No," Daphne said slowly.

"Instructor Shugui generally tells us what we need to work on, what exactly we need to do. You have thus far left that part open," Blaise explained.

"Ah. Um, I'm no Instructor, but let's see… Blaise, since you use an extremely heavy weapon designed for highly destructive single strikes, you need to have the strength to use it. You are to do fifty horizontal strokes, then fifty vertical strokes, then fifty diagonal strokes, alternating left and right slashes. Once you're done, take a two minute breather, then repeat until we're out of time," Harry finished.

Blaise nodded and moved away to start practicing. "What about me?" Hermione asked. She had charmed her wooden whip to be flexible and to endure better.

Harry thought furiously. "You use the whip, and that means you need not only the stamina to keep using it over and over, but the accuracy. _Accio log!_" A very large tree trunk about twice as thick as Harry flew over, and Harry indicated with his wand for it to stop in front of Hermione, standing on end. "Hermione, you are to keep using your whip to attack this log. Don't stop unless you're completely exhausted."

Harry was almost starting to get into this as he saw Hermione doing as he said as well. By now, Theo had managed to get his wooden facsimile of his weapon attached to his wrist using a Sticking Charm. His arms felt very heavy. Harry turned to him and Daphne next. "Since you both use twin weapons, you two are to fight each other. Use only your weapons. I guarantee you that this will teach you how to dodge and block in no time. If one of you lands a solid blow, back off and start over, since with real weapons that would be the equivalent of either death or severe maiming."

Theo and Daphne looked at each other and gave half-hearted attacks that were easily blocked. Harry sighed, rubbing his eyes. _I need to give them some incentive… I know! _"Whoever wins the most gets to use my Invisibility Cloak for a week!"

Daphne and Theo stopped and looked at each other again. "Sorry Theo, but I really want that Cloak," Daphne said with a smirk.

"I don't think so, Daphne," Theo countered, grinning widely. "I'll be busy using it to sneak into the kitchens for some snacks!"

"You honestly think you'll win?"

"Let's find out!" With that, Daphne and Theo rushed at each other, slashing and barely blocking.

Harry smiled before taking his wooden gunblade – he had charmed it to be very, very heavy – and began running through his katas.

Harry had gotten everyone some exercise clothes with his huge funds during some of his free time on Terra, and they had come enchanted with a dispersed Gravija spell. These were better than Harry's old exercise clothes in that the user could stock more Gravija in it to increase the gravity training. Since none of Harry's friends had any Gravija spells – and wouldn't for quite some time – Harry was going to increase their gravity by one Gravija spell every week.

Of course, Quetzalcoatl had pointed out that eventually, they would weigh so much that they would crack the stone floors of Hogwarts, but Harry knew that by then, his friends would be ready to handle anything thrown at them.

At seven o'clock, Harry stopped everyone and undid the Transfiguration and weight charms on the wood, throwing it different directions. Then they went inside to eat breakfast and receive their schedules. Harry quickly memorized his, noting grimly that Defense was the first and Potions the last class of the day for him. _How predictable. Dumbledore wants to see my experiences in the previous classes. _

_:Original? No. Effective? Yes.:_

_I know, Quetz. _

_:Quetz?:_

_A nickname. Just thinking your full name makes a thought seem too long. Thought I'd try it out. I don't know why I never gave you a nickname before now. _

_:Hmm. Quetz… short, to the point. I like it.: _

_Then Quetz it is!_

Harry made sure to show up fifteen minutes early for his Defense class; he really was looking forward to it. Snape strode in right as the bell rang, and instantly the class fell silent. "Allow me to be blunt," Snape said abruptly. "Gilderoy Lockhart was an absolute idiot when it came to Defense Against the Dark Arts. Now, I am being assigned the task of making up for the mistakes of both Quirrel and Lockhart… now, I understand there are a few students here that fancy themselves good at Defense. We shall see.

"At your age, you need to be educated of some of the more… _minor _Dark creatures. Now, because we have lost approximately one-third of the school year to a buffoon, added onto an incompetent's job last year, we are being pressed for time, and we do not even have a proper text to work with," Snape sneered. "For these reasons, I shall teach you two or three creatures every class, and then you need to research them outside of class. There may or may not be a quiz on them the following class period. For those students out there unable to rub two brain cells together" – here, he glared at Neville, who was practically shivering in his boots – "this means that if you know what's good for you, you'll become very intimately acquainted with either the library or the local know-it-all." He looked very pointedly at Hermione, who glared back at him, not at all appreciating how Snape had just guaranteed that most of the grunts would just ask her.

Harry, though, had begun to see Snape's true cunning. By putting all the attention on Hermione, he had challenged the rest of the class to take the hard road and do some honest work instead of begging and pleading with Hermione. The ones who put in their own time and effort would be the ones earning good grades and occasional pointers. In the same stroke, he was preparing a preview for Hermione of what would continue to happen if she kept on the road of the know-it-all. And at the same time, Snape had hidden his well-meaning with insults, implication and sneering. Harry had to admit to himself that he was a little impressed.

"Now, we will start with hinkypunks!" Snape said, and began to lecture.

Harry, all in all, was pleased with the lesson. They had covered hinkypunks and grindylows today, two of the more common Dark creatures. They could be dangerous if one was ignorant, but they were rather easy to beat.

The rest of the classes for that day except for the last went as usual. Everyone showed up early for Potions for once in their lives, eager to learn from the venerable Headmaster. Even Harry was curious what he'd learn in class, despite the fact that Dumbledore would be using Legilimency on him during the entire class.

Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling when the bell rang, almost instantly attracting attention to his eyes. "Hello, class," he said happily. "I have been reviewing Professor Snape's notes, and the next potion he was going to teach was the Scouring Potion for cleaning up more difficult magical messes. So…" With a flick of his wand, instructions appeared on the board. "As you may have noticed, this potion will not require all of class time to brew, so I shall teach a nifty charm to whoever prepares a proper Scouring Potion by the end of class."

That promise had everyone putting in their best efforts. Dumbledore walked around the room, giving little pointers or telling how to correct accidentally adding too many dungbeetles. Harry was glad, as it gave him the opportunity to update his false persona outside his shields. Two-thirds of the way through the class, everyone, even Neville – though it had taken him two tries – had a working Scouring Potion. Dumbledore accepted the vials to be graded and placed them on the desk neatly before Vanishing the rest of everyone's potions with a few flicks of his wand.

"Well then, you all ready?" Dumbledore asked. "This is a sixth year Charm, so if you cannot do it yet, do not be disappointed. You will have the power soon enough."

By now everyone was hanging off the edge of their seats. Even Draco Malfoy looked eager. Dumbledore silently conjured a glass ball the size of his fist and then tossed it up in the air. Everyone's eyes were on that glass ball as it fell, but Dumbledore waved his wand and the glass ball quickly came to a stop. "The spell is _Arresto Momentum,_" Dumbledore said calmly. "Its purpose is to rapidly stop falling objects."

"Can't we use _Wingardium Leviosa _for that?" Draco asked.

"You could," Dumbledore agreed, "if the object that was falling was particularly strong and solid. You see, the Levitation Charm you learned last year is designed to take stationary items and make them float. But if it was cast on a falling object, the object would then stop in an instant, as if it were hitting the ground. So, if I had used _Wingardium Leviosa _instead of _Arresto Momentum,_ the glass ball would have broken. _Arresto Momentum _is generally used by Quidditch players to keep their friends from falling to their deaths if a Bludger knocks them off their brooms, but it comes in handy elsewhere as well. Now, can anyone tell me how it works?"

Harry had been thinking hard about this subject for the last minute while Dumbledore was explaining. When no one else, not even Hermione, raised her hand, he slowly raised his.

"Ah, Mr. Potter."

"I'm not certain, but I gather that _Arresto Momentum _is supposed to essentially catch something in mid-air while at the same time being flexible enough to keep from breaking it, right?" Dumbledore nodded. "Then you would need to basically make a net of magic. Perhaps a weaving of magical threads?"

Dumbledore beamed. "Precisely! The caster needs to focus on making a weave of magic, loose enough to be flexible, but tight enough to actually catch the object. This usually takes quite some practice and quite of a bit of magical power, which is why it's a NEWT level spell."

_That sounds extraordinarily difficult, especially to accomplish in the span of a second, _Harry thought in awe. _But, I admit, that would be an incredibly useful spell, especially if I could modify it into a kind of net to catch spells around me. _

_:While that would be an excellent shield, it would undoubtedly take a great deal of time and skills we do yet have. Focus, Harry, we must learn to be an Animagus first.:_

_I know, Quetz, I know. Right now, though, it's a sixth year spell. That will almost definitely force my magical core to adapt faster. _

Dumbledore, who had paused to observe the thoughts of the students, turned his gaze on Harry, who immediately felt the probe and pushed out thoughts and feelings of pride, awe and eagerness in learning how to do this spell. Dumbledore left, and Harry saw that his face looked satisfied.

"Well, the wand movement is simple actually, just swish and flick. The hard part is keeping your focus strong enough to make the spell work," Dumbledore continued. He conjured a rubber ball for each of them. "Practice makes perfect, so why not get to it?"

Everyone looked at their balls, spread out, and in a chaotic fashion tossed up their balls and tried to hit it. Cries of "_Arresto Momentum_" were everywhere. Harry prepared himself, tossed up the ball, swished and flicked. "_Arresto Momentum!_" he called commandingly, focusing hard on the idea of creating an invisible net.

Harry's aim was good, but he wasn't used to trying to hit a moving target while focusing entirely on something else. His spell just missed the rubber ball and hit the ceiling. "Damn," Harry cursed. He caught the rubber ball in his hand and tossed it up again. "_Arresto Momentum!_"

This time, his aim was true, and his spell hit the rubber ball in the middle of its descent. Harry could feel his magic forming the net underneath the ball, but it was slow, very slow. Too slow. The ball, while it was slowing noticeably, still hit the floor and bounced.

Dumbledore had been paying special attention to Harry in this, and saw that his ball had actually started to slow down. _I don't believe it, _Dumbledore thought in shock. _He's actually getting it! His power's not enough to do it in a timely fashion, of course, but he's got the idea down! I introduced this spell to show how difficult their years would be ahead. Many of the seventh years are still trying to master this spell, yet Harry, a mere second year, might actually get it! If he works hard enough at it, he'll develop his magical core enough to do wandless magic in a year or two! _

Dumbledore's shock disappeared then, making way for the cunning aspect of his mind. _I can use this. True, it was unexpected, but I can further our bond by teaching him wandless magic when he's ready. Perhaps in his fifth or sixth year. Yes, and then he'll trust me even more. _Dumbledore was barely able to keep himself from cackling like a madman.

That night, Harry was still trying to get his stupid rubber ball to stop before hitting the floor. He'd managed to make some progress by slowing the descent of the ball more, but his magic just seemed to refuse to come out fast enough for the spell to work.

"Argh, why won't this work?" Harry yelled in frustration.

"Harry, are you _still_ trying to get _Arresto Momentum?_" Daphne asked exasperatedly.

"You've already got better results than the rest of us," Theo consoled him.

"I've got the power," Harry said with a sigh. "But I can't get it to come out fast enough to stop the ball."

_:Which is due to the fact that your core is still adapting to wizarding magic,: _Quetz reminded him.

"You don't get it," Harry told his friends, who were listening raptly. "When I get this spell down, I've got enough power available to me to attempt the Animagus transformation once the potion is finished."

Hermione, who was looking enviously at Harry's progress – she had managed to slow down her rubber ball, but not as much as Harry had – looked at him confusedly. "What? Wouldn't you need to be able to do a sixth year Transfiguration, not just a sixth year Charms spell?"

"Yeah," Harry agreed, "but if you listen to the seventh years sometimes, they're still practicing the spell. They don't have it completely down either. So if I manage it, that means I've got a seventh year's focus and power, which means I'll definitely be able to become an Animagus!" He tossed up the rubber ball in the air again. "_Arresto Momentum!_"

Harry was one very frustrated, sore, tired twelve-year-old the next morning. He had stayed up late, working on the spell, and had managed to get the abused rubber ball to slow to a snail's pace in falling, but he couldn't stop it fully, and that was infuriating. _Why am I so sore? _he asked Quetz.

_:You forced the channel of your magical core dedicated to wizarding magic to widen a little, and that caused your entire body's magical pathways to increase slightly from the new influx of magic you received overnight.:_

_I wonder why I never seem to run out of magic, _Harry pondered, remembering how drained Hermione was after attempting the spell for an hour with him that night.

_:You have a ridiculously large core.:_

_What do you mean? _

_:Imagine that your magic is water. You have an ocean, while your friends are somewhere between a lake and a sea.:_

_Then why can't I access all of it? _

_:Think of your Terran spells as… water animals, yes, that should work. Beginner spells are small fish, Intermediate spells are otters, Advanced spells are dolphins, and Ultimate spells are whales. And your magic's access to your body is a dam. Back on Terra, all these fish were all crowding around the dam to be readily accessible. The water that was able to flow between them was used for your Metamorphmagus power. Now that you're learning wizarding magic, you need more and more access to the water, and the animals are blocking the way. But the longer you don't use the Terran spells, the further away the animals go from the harbor, allowing a stronger and stronger current to enter the dam, allowing the dam to open further, allowing you to access more of your magic faster.:_

_But when I cast a Terran spell, the animals that correspond rush over as close as they can to the current for me to be accessible again, _Harry realized. _And they block the current from growing for a while. _

_:Correct. Since you were practicing so hard with the spell last night, you forced your current to grow and your dam to open up a little more than usual, and that meant that the rivers – the magical pathways – were slightly flooded, so the rivers grew in size, which is why you're sore.:_

_Wait, that means I'll be able to access my magic more quickly, right? _

_:Yes.:_

_Yes! _Harry crowed, his bad mood almost completely evaporated. He grabbed the rubber ball from his pocket and tossed it up in the air. "_Arresto Momentum!_"

The ball's descent slowed gradually, coming to a stop about a foot above the floor. Harry blinked. The ball was still floating. "YES!" Harry cried, his voice echoing through the halls. He grinned, imagining Hermione's reaction when she found out that Harry could perform a NEWT level spell.

Harry was practically whistling as he walked downstairs to the field where his friends were waiting. It was close to five o'clock in the morning, but even so, everyone saw Harry's small grin.

Daphne, who quite simply wasn't a morning person, growled at him. "Just why are you so happy this morning?"

"I can do _Arresto Momentum_," Harry said casually, his grin broadening until it seemed to reach his ears.

Everyone looked at Harry incredulously, eyes bugging out. "B-b-b-b-but that's a NEWT level spell!" Hermione protested weakly.

"What can I say? When you got it, you got it," Harry told her flippantly. "Of course, it's not as good as Dumbledore's, but it'll get the job done."

"How? How did you do it?" Hermione asked desperately. "What were we doing wrong?"

"Nothing," Harry replied flatly. "You just need to practice. Doing so will increase your magical reserves and your ability to draw on your magical core for more magic."

Hermione nodded, mentally sighing in relief. She wasn't doing anything wrong, and she hadn't overlooked something obvious. She simply needed to practice. It still irked her that Harry had mastered the spell before her, however.

A routine quickly developed for the five of them. They would practice weapons training early in the morning, go to classes, do some magical training and studies in the afternoon, do some homework, and then relax a little. Harry would then go work on the Animagus potion with Snape. During weekends, Harry's friends would go to Terra for the day before returning to sleep and eat. This way they kept from arousing suspicion. Harry and Flitwick would take advantage of the opportunity for more Charms training until Flitwick needed to work on paperwork.

Speaking of which, Flitwick was surprised by Harry's sudden increase in the speed of learning new spells. He attributed it to simple eagerness and appreciation for the topic. Only Harry knew that it was only because he had forced his magical pathways to widen a little to allow him better access to his magic.

Transfiguration had also gotten a little easier for Harry. In between his first class with Dumbledore and the time the Animagus potion finished, Harry mastered third year Transfiguration and had made a good start on his fourth year.

Defense Against the Dark Arts was going well too. There weren't many people who were doing well, but Harry and his friends were among those who were. Hermione was quickly growing exasperated with the number of requests to study together from the lazy students who simply wanted her brain. She was slowly learning to keep her intellect a bit more low-key and not flaunt it whenever she had the right answer.

Finally, at the end of the month, the Animagus Potion was ready. Harry, under Snape's supervision, carefully scooped it out into several flasks. When he was done, he saw Snape watching him expectantly. "Bottoms up," Harry said cheerfully before drinking some of one of his flasks. And then, everything turned dark.

_Dreamscape_

_Harry woke up, surrounded by white. There was nothing beneath him, nothing above him, nothing around him. Harry was floating in a complete void of nothing, yet he knew he wasn't alone. _Where am I? _he thought. _Why am I here? Am I dead? _Harry didn't think so, but the void was both comforting and bothersome. It was a place of paradox. _

_Suddenly a multitude of voices spoke, and they were male and female yet neither. "You have the ability to change, child of magic. For seven nights, you shall search for your spiritual counterpart in your dreams."_

"_How will I know when I have found it?" Harry asked. _

"_You will know. Now return to whence you came." _

_End Dreamscape_

Harry woke up with a gasp, sitting bolt upright. The first thing he noticed was that he was on cold stone floor. The second thing was that Snape was watching him with interest. Harry closed his eyes and remembered what he had been doing. _The Animagus potion! _

"So, can you be an Animagus?" Snape asked coolly, yet his eyes betrayed his curiosity.

"Yeah," Harry answered slowly. "Thank you, Professor, for helping me with the potion. I've learned a lot. I owe you."

Snape shook his head. "You owe me nothing. The Life Debt I owed your father has now been fully repaid."

Harry looked up. "You owed my father a Life Debt?"

Snape was silent for a few moments, and Harry thought that he wasn't going to answer before Snape opened his mouth. "Your father and I… we were enemies at Hogwarts, always trying to get the other in trouble. I tried my hardest to get him expelled, while he and his friends made my life hell. One of his friends, Remus Lupin, had a strange affliction that came over him frequently, leaving him ill once a month. At night in that time of illness, he would enter what is now known as the Shrieking Shack underneath the Whomping Willow.

"I only found out that information through spying in my fifth year. Naturally, I wanted to find his secret, and I was willing to do almost anything to get him in trouble. So, when another of your father's friends, Sirius Black, told me how to get by the tree, I didn't question him." Snape laughed bitterly. "I was a fool; he and I were bitter enemies, why would he help me? I was acting exactly like an ignorant Gryffindor.

"In any case, I followed Lupin at my next opportunity. I had no idea what was going to happen as I opened the tunnel door. Suddenly your father tackled me and magically locked the door, but not before I saw something that haunts me to this day. The thing that inspired me to develop the Wolfsbane Potion. The mad, mad eyes and snapping jaws of a transformed werewolf."

Snape looked directly into Harry's eyes. "You father saved my life, Mr. Potter, and as such I was indebted to him. He died before I could repay it, and so the Debt transferred to his son, you. Now I have saved your life. When you think on it, the various mistakes you made, when added together, would have created a large explosion that you were unlikely to have lived from. And so, my debt is paid." Snape strode from the room.

_:He's not quite correct,: _Quetz said after a few moments. _:He still owes you for saving his life last year with the troll.:_

_Hmm. _Harry's thoughts were somewhere completely different. _Remus Lupin is a werewolf, huh? _Harry snorted. _Remus and Romulus, children raised by wolves. Lupin, short for Lupine, which is Latin for wolf. Did some prophet name him or something? _

_:Who knows? Anyway, you should get some sleep so you may find your Animagus form.:_

Harry brightened. _Right! _With that, Harry was off to bed, hopefully for sweet dreams. It took some time, but Harry finally fell asleep.

_Dreamscape_

_Harry woke up in a plains area. "Huh?" He sat up and looked around. For miles, there were plains, but off in one direction, Harry could see tall mountains. In another, Harry could see a swamp. In a third direction, there was a huge forest. Harry turned around and saw a desert in the distance, and off on the horizon was a glacier. To his right was an ocean. Harry could see animals here and there, ignoring him. _

How am I going to find my animal with all this to explore? _Harry thought wildly. He took a deep breath and used Occlumency techniques to calm down. Even if he failed the first week, he could retake the potion and have a second week to try. _Stay calm, Harry. Don't think about what your Animagus form could be, just go where your spirit guides you.

_Sure enough, Harry could feel a slight tugging going in one direction: towards the mountains. He started walking. _

_-----------------------------------------------------_

Well, Harry's just begun his Animagus journey. How do ya like Snape's telling of the story, and my analogy for Harry's magic?

Jem: Well, that's what you got for making me do the disclaimer. Live with it!

Read and Review, please!


	6. True Meaning of Family

Hey, it's that time again. I do have some things I want to say. Gogolu, Ginny was able to get the diary in Harry's trunk because Harry was rather preoccupied and in a rush when he left, and thus accidentally neglected to charm his trunk. Furthermore, I was almost certain I managed to explain why Terran spells interfered with Harry's development. In short, here's what going on with that. Terran spells are preformed when Harry draws them from enemies. His magical core spent much time multiplying these spells, so as a result he has a maximum of 1000 of each type of spell. These spells reside in his magical core, inhibiting the flow of his natural magic through his body. The longer Harry goes without calling on his Terran spells, working instead on his wizarding spells, the more magic flows from his core into his body, giving him more power to wield at a moment's notice.

However, Harry's magical core is adapting, and will soon be able to handle low-level Terran spells without inhibiting his wizarding progress. As there are only 4 different levels of Terran spells - Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, and Ultimate - eventually, Harry will be able to cast all of those without inhibiting his core. For the moment, however, Harry needs to exercise restraint in using the Terran spells so he can progress quickly enough. This is NOT keeping him from learning more spells, it just makes it more difficult for Harry to learn and use more powerful spells. For instance, at the moment he would have an IMMENSELY difficult time learning the Patronus Charm, much more difficult than he did in canon third year.

As for Theo, he is NOT acquiring Terran spells just yet. He's been focusing entirely on his physical fitness at the moment. However, the time is coming that he will start to acquire Terran spells. Cerberus, for the moment, is merely another mind with Theo, point out what he misses, acting in much the same way Quetzalcoatl is acting for Harry.

Now that that's taken care of...

Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, I would have made certain that the phrase "he had become obsessed with Draco Malfoy" would NOT have been in Half-Blood Prince.

Chapter Six: The True Meaning of Family

_Dreamscape Continued_

_Harry quickly decided that walking was taking too much time. He began to run, following the pull of his soul. Harry had plenty of energy, and was looking around to see the sights as he ran. The terrain was slowly changing around him from grassy plains to a rocky field. He began to see more and more different creatures. There was a mountain goat, and over on the right was a mountain lion._

_Harry finally reached the bottom of the mountain and looked up. Here, the mountain went straight up, creating a cliff of sorts. The cliff face was pretty slick, which left Harry wondering how he would get up there. _Well, here is too slippery… _Harry decided to try to find a better place to climb. Harry was exploring when he finally found an animal trail that would serve as a path. Barely containing his delight, he began walking up the trail when suddenly…_

_End Dreamscape_

… Harry woke up to the sound of his alarm clock. He groaned and got out of bed, turning off his alarm as he went. _Damn it. I was doing so well… At least now I know that my Animagus form lives in the mountains._

_:That lowers the number of possibilities considerably.:_

_I hope I get a bird of some kind; it'd be nice to be able to fly without a broom, _Harry thought idly, dressing quickly for his morning routine. It was only through the use of Occlumency techniques that Harry was able to focus on that day's classes.

That night, Harry made sure to go to sleep earlier than usual. He wanted the extra time for searching for his Animagus form.

_Dreamscape_

_Harry woke up in the same spot he had left off, at the start of the animal trail. He smiled. _At least I don't have to start over back in the plains, _Harry thought in appreciation as he started walking up the path, taking in the sights as he went. _

_Harry could see that the forest aspect of this world mixed with the mountainous aspect at some point in the distance, but his form, he felt, was not in that direction. So, Harry eventually abandoned the animal path and made his way up the mountain. The mountain was getting steeper and steeper the further Harry went, and Harry somehow knew that his target was in one of the caves high above him._

_Harry finally reached a point where it was too steep to walk normally. He sighed, and latched onto the mountain, pulling himself upwards. He had by now realized that magic didn't work in this world, so he couldn't just levitate himself or use Float._

Wizards would have a terrible time trying to get up this without magic, _Harry thought amusedly. _Muggles have got one thing right: physical fitness is important. _He punctuated the thought by grabbing another outcrop of rock and pulling himself upwards, wincing at the pain of the jagged rock cutting into his skin. _It's all in your head, Harry. There won't be anything when you wake up in the morning.

_Harry's Animagus form was close, really close, Harry could feel it! He ignored his sore arms' wish for rest and pulled himself up with newfound vigor. His sense told him that above him, another thirty feet further, Harry's form awaited. He smiled and was about to get to it when…_

_End Dreamscape_

… once again, the damned alarm clock interrupted him. Harry's wand jumped into his hand. "_Incendio!_" Harry hissed, incensed that the evilest invention of all time would dare ring at this precious moment.

The alarm clock burst into flames before exploding in all directions. Theo and Blaise had gotten up at the same time Harry did that day, and each looked at him curiously. "What'd the alarm clock ever do to you?" Theo asked, faking a scolding voice.

"It woke me up when I was about to find my Animagus form," Harry growled, glaring at the remains of the alarm clock.

"You will want an alarm clock to wake up this early in the future," Blaise reminded him quietly. None of them wanted to wake up Draco or his goons.

"I know, Blaise, I know." Harry sighed. "_Reparo._" The parts zoomed over and put themselves back together again, into Harry's alarm clock.

"Um, Harry… you're hands are bleeding."

Harry looked down and recognized the cuts. _Oh sweet Merlin… _"No way… that was just a dream," Harry said in shock.

"It seems that your search for your Animagus form has resulted in a transference of wounds to the real world," Blaise observed. "You should get that looked at it."

Suddenly, Harry felt the incredible stinging pain in his hands. He grunted in pain. "_Episkey_." He used his right hand to run his wand across the wound in his left hand, healing it without a mark. He did the same for his right hand. "Boy am I glad that Snape taught me this spell when I first met him. _Scourgify._" Harry waved his wand at his bed sheets, which he had now noticed had some blood on them. The blood disappeared.

"That's part of the reason why not many become Animagi," Theo said solemnly. "Their experiences finding and conquering their Animagus forms transfer to real life. You die there, you die here."

"And you can't use magic there," Harry whispered in realization. "Son of a bitch. Wait a second, did you mention conquering one's form?"

Theo nodded. "Just finding it isn't enough. You have to convince it to join you. The challenge depends on the creature."

Harry swallowed hard. He suddenly had a not-so-good feeling about what would happen that night.

_Dreamscape_

_Having climbed most of the way up, Harry looked up at the cave where he knew his Animagus form resided. Steeling himself, Harry climbed the last few feet and pulled himself onto a small ledge by the smallish cave. _

"_Hello? Anyone in there…" _

_Two green eyes looked out from the darkness in the cave, peering out at Harry. A new voice resounded through his head. __**Why are you here, child of magic?:**_

"_I came here to find my spiritual counterpart," Harry told the creature, whatever it was. "My soul brought me here." He inspected the tug he felt and judged that it pointed towards the creature. "And now, I feel, you're the one." _

_**:Yes, Harry Potter. I shall come forward.:**_

_The eyes, and the body attached to them, moved out of the darkness into the light, where Harry could see them. A dark yellow, almost orange talon was first visible, and Harry began grinning; it was a bird, as he had hoped for! Next, he saw black feathers, and the beak. Then, the whole bird was out, and Harry's breath caught. The bird looked a lot like Fawkes, except that the eyes were green and the feathers were black – though they seemed to have a dark purple marking of feathers in a lightning bolt pattern. _

"_Are you… a Phoenix?" Harry asked, stunned. _

_**:Close. I am a variant of the Phoenix. I am a Storm Phoenix.:**_

"_Um, I'm sorry, but I've never heard of a Storm Phoenix," Harry apologized. "Could you please tell me the difference?"_

_**:Certainly. A Storm Phoenix is born when a Phoenix loses its companion shortly before being forced to die and revive. A few of its powers change significantly. A Phoenix's song has the ability to bring hope to the side of Light and despair to the Dark, but a Storm Phoenix has two songs: one to summon a storm, and the second to make the Dark relive the most horrible moments of their lives, and the Light to recall their loved ones. A Phoenix can instantaneously travel by fire, but a Storm Phoenix can no longer do that. They instead travel by lightning. In essence, the Storm Phoenix is a much more vindictive form of the Phoenix. Storm Phoenixes are still immortal, and their tears carry the same healing powers Phoenixes carry.:**_

_Harry was quite impressed. "The way I hear it, you might have a challenge for me so I can earn the privilege to use your form."_

_The Storm Phoenix looked at Harry critically. __**:You have already passed my test of wisdom and courage. You did not try to ascend the mountain when you first came across it, instead opting to look for a safer route. Yet you abandoned the safe animal path when you realized that it would not take you where you needed to go. You knew after a few attempts that you could not use magic, but you did not let that daunt you. Finally, you did not shy away from pain, even after you found out that it would cross over to the waking world.: **__The Storm Phoenix hopped over to Harry's bleeding hands and cried a few tears on each, healing them. __**:And now, I am your companion. I grant you my form. Use it well.:**_

_End Dreamscape_

Harry woke up, but this time the alarm clock wasn't ringing. In fact, it was a little after two o'clock in the morning. Nevertheless, Harry was wide awake. He felt a little more complete in a way he'd never realized he'd been missing.

Harry got up and threw on his Invisibility Cloak, exiting the Slytherin common room and heading towards the room he'd brewed the Animagus potion in. From what Harry remembered, now he had to do partial transformations. He hadn't done any human-to-animal transfigurations, however, so he had no idea how to do that. _Time for a bit of research, then. _

Because Harry knew exactly what he was looking for, Madame Pince was able to help him out. She showed him a book simply called _Human Transfiguration_, and Harry immediately began reading it. He was astounded at the complexity of the theory, and began to understand just why the theory wasn't taught until late fifth year, and the spells themselves weren't taught until sixth.

But something nagged at Harry while he was reading. It took him until he was halfway through it for him to figure out the problem. The Animagus transformation had to be at least slightly different from standard human Transfiguration. The question was, what was the difference? Thankfully, _Human Transfiguration _gave the answer at the end of the book.

_Human Transfiguration is a very difficult branch of magic, as you have probably seen from the complex theory. It takes not only strength of mind, but of magical power. The difference between Transfiguring humans and the Animagus transformation is where the focus lies. Normal human Transfiguration works similarly to animal Transfiguration, except with extra focus on keeping the mind of the human in the transformation. In essence, the spell works from the outside in. _

_However, the Animagus transformation works in the opposite way. It works from the inside out. It takes the inner animal being focused on, and forcibly changes the body to match it, which also allows the 'mind' of the animal to join the human mind. For instance, a dog Animagus would have not only his or her own mind, but a dog's instincts and desires as well. This is why Animagi are very quick in learn how to move in their new body. _

That was what Harry needed to know. It had taken him three days to finish reading the thick tome, but now he finally had the answer. Returning to his training room, Harry closed his eyes and focused, hard, on his memory of the Storm Phoenix. He wanted to start off with a talon, so he focused specifically hard on that.

He felt a painful stinging in his foot and then promptly fell over. "Ow," Harry muttered as he quickly found he couldn't get up. He pulled himself over to a chair and sat in it before looking at his foot. It was a talon, about as large as his old foot!

There was something troubling him, though. _I thought it was supposed to hurt more than that, _he thought at Quetzalcoatl.

_:Normally, I believe it would,: _Quetz replied. _:I was watching your magic, to make sure you could reverse it if something went wrong. You were definitely drawing on your Animagus power, I could tell. I believe that your proficiency with morphing into other people has greatly lowered the pain of forcing your foot to transform into a talon.:_

Harry grinned. _That should greatly decrease the time I need to finish the process! _He transformed his other foot into a talon, and then transformed them both back and forth until the stinging had gone away. Then he upgraded it to his lower legs, which hurt a lot more than just his feet. After transforming them back and forth several times, the pain was slowly going away, but he was getting tired from constantly transforming. It was heavily draining, not magically, but mentally.

The next day, after finishing up with his lower legs, Harry worked on transforming his hands into the ends of wings. That hurt more than Harry thought it would, but he understood that his hands were particularly sensitive with the nerves. It took him an extra day to get that part down.

After that, Harry worked on turning his arms into wings. That didn't hurt as much as he had thought it might – it just involved turning his bones hollow and compressing his arm muscles. By this point, Harry had involved his friends as well, and Hermione had taken it upon herself to learn the spell to force an Animagus back into his human form: _Animagus Reverto. _

A full week had passed before Harry felt ready to try transforming his head. That, surprisingly, wasn't very painful at all – Harry had great experience in changing facial features, so it was a fairly painless process to merge his nose and mouth into a protruding beak. So on the seventh and eighth days, Harry worked on his torso, which took him hours to finally get the pain down.

Finally, on the ninth day since he had started his transformations, Harry was about to do the full-body transformation. "Here goes," Harry muttered to his friends.

"Good luck."

"Thanks." Harry took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Then he focused on the entire body of the Storm Phoenix of his spirit. He felt the familiar changes, and the new sensation of shrinking. After what felt like an eternity – though it was really only about thirty seconds – Harry finished his transformation. He felt the instincts of the Storm Phoenix rise and meet his mind in harmony. Harry could feel the Storm Phoenix's urge to protect Harry's friends and family, and the equal urge to destroy those who hurt them.

Harry opened his eyes. Everything seemed so large now as he looked around. On instinct, Harry spread his wings, tensed his legs and leapt into the air. His arms had been strong from wielding the gunblade for so long, and so his wing muscles were also strong as he flew around his friends' heads.

Harry the Storm Phoenix finally landed on a desk in front of his friends, who were watching him in awe. "Hello," he chirped, except it came out as a literal chirp.

_:Well done, Harry, on achieving your first Animagus form,: _Quetz said with a strange note to it. _:I am very proud of you.: _

_Thank you, Quetz. _With that, Harry focused on his human body and managed to transform back after twenty-five seconds. He could still feel his Storm Phoenix form deep within him, in his magic. Yet something had changed in his human self, he could feel it.

_:Interesting. The Storm Phoenix has affected your body magically. While the effects are uncertain, I speculate that you may need to have Burning Days, or whatever the equivalent is for the Storm Phoenix. Your life span may also have lengthened.:_

_I see. Anything else? _

_:Looking… ah, there is one more thing. The Storm Phoenix has left a small imprint of its instincts and abilities in you. You may develop a few bird-like tendencies, such as an instinctual knowledge of the winds, after spending more time in that form.:_

_I suppose that's only to be expected._

"Um, Harry?"

Harry shook his head, clearing it of his thoughts. "Sorry?"

"You zoned out on us," Hermione pointed out.

"Sorry," Harry repeated. "I was talking with Quetz. Anyway, what were you saying?"

"We were asking if you were able to transfer your Terran spells to that body," Blaise informed him.

_Well, how about it? _

_:Working… done. I have successfully moved one of your Holy spells into the Storm Phoenix's form.:_

_Don't do anymore until I tell you, ok? I'm going to see how much I can take. _

_:Acknowledged.:_

"Yeah, Quetz can transfer the spells," he told Blaise. "Not sure how much magic a Storm Phoenix can handle, though."

"I have a question," Theo said, raising his hand. "Why couldn't you transfer some of your Terran magic to Quetzalcoatl?" Everyone stared at him. "I mean it! He's a magical construct, too! Shouldn't he also have a magical core? If he does, then he could lighten the load off Harry!"

_Quetz?_

_:I… I never thought of that… I feel rather stupid now…:_

_You mean… he said something intelligent?_

_:Yes.:_

_But it's Theo!_

_:I know.: _

"He's feeling rather stupid right now," Harry announced. "Oh well, no harm done. In fact, the motivation to keep from going crazy with pain helped me rush through learning how to be an Animagus, so I'm glad Quetz didn't think of that."

Daphne approached Theo carefully and looked him over. "What?" Theo asked.

"I'm checking for signs of glamour," Daphne explained. "Where's the real Theodore Nott? The one who's blissfully ignorant and doesn't even know what the word 'construct' means?"

Theo scowled at her playfully. "Hey, I'm allowed smart moments, you know!"

"Well, hopefully you start getting smart moments more often," Hermione told him, her lips twitching into a smile.

"But where's the fun in that?" Theo whined. "I'll never surprise you!"

Everyone laughed at that, and Harry's soul soared like his Animagus form. He was happy to have his friends, and he'd treasure moments like these forever.

Quidditch had been canceled the previous semester due to the many attacks of the Basilisk, but now that that was taken care of, Dumbledore was thinking about bringing it back. There wasn't much time to get prepared, true, but it was always fun to see these students playing. There was also the added morale it gave to the students.

_Surely doing so would also allow me to get further on Harry's good side, _Dumbledore thought. And just like that, the decision was made.

"I don't believe this!" Flint was ranting to the Quidditch team after dinner that night. "We have _three weeks _before our match with Ravenclaw! We have to get in shape and fast! That's why I've arranged with Madame Hooch for us to book the field every afternoon after classes! Be there or else!"

Harry mentally groaned. _Damn it… I had plans for the afternoons… I was going to start pranking everyone again… _

_:We can still do that at night, and then no one will suspect us.:_

_True enough. _

Harry's schedule was quickly filled up. His mornings were filled with weapons training, and then he went to class until mid-afternoon, where he was immediately hijacked and put into Quidditch practice. Then he had dinner, did some homework, trained with his friends, and then he set up some pranks for the next day.

Classes were going well. Snape's Defense classes were Harry's favorite, as the speed-learning was exactly towards his style. By the first week in February he had almost finished catching everyone up on the first year Defense, which contained mostly theory and a few of the easy Dark creatures.

Transfiguration was getting a bit easier, Harry realized. Although he had long since been able to do second year Transfiguration, Harry found that he could let his magic flow in class instead of forcing it as he did with the fourth year Transfiguration he was teaching himself. Even that, however, had become easier, and Harry suspected that his Animagus transformation had something to do with that.

Flitwick's official Charms classes were a breeze, but the small teacher let Harry work on other things in his class. After all, Harry was taking unofficial tutoring from Flitwick over the weekends, and was doing marvelously. Harry had gotten almost a quarter of the way through fourth year Charms magic in the past two months. Flitwick told Harry in private once that he was considering placing Harry for the Charms OWL test early, at the end of his fourth year. Harry was uncertain if he wanted to do that, but promised Flitwick that he would at least consider it.

Harry was teaching his friends what he learned from Flitwick, but they weren't making much headway. Their magical cores simply weren't developed enough. Although all of them had learned through third year Charms – thanks to Hermione's help on the theory aspect – fourth year was just a little too advanced for second years. Hermione and the others could cast two or three fourth-year spells before they collapsed from exhaustion. But they kept at it, because Harry pointed out to them that their cores would grow if they did.

However, although Hermione, Blaise, Theo and Daphne were struggling with fourth-year spells, they were blossoming on Terra. Harry took them there every Saturday and Sunday morning for extra training with Shugui, and they were becoming better and better fighters. After learning from Flitwick on Saturdays and Sundays, Harry went to Terra himself and sparred against Squall to keep up his skills with the gunblade. He didn't want to become rusty, after all.

During these spars, Harry got more information on the situation on Terra. Squall and the others were all in their fifth year, and their test would be in April. Squall had Shiva as a Guardian Force, while Quistis had another copy of Quetzalcoatl. Zell had been assigned Carbuncle, which made Harry laugh out loud. Zell, who loved to cause destruction and mayhem, had a GF that only cast Reflect on him and his allies. Then again, the choice _was _perfect for him – it meant that the only battle that could be waged against him was purely physical when Carbuncle was called on, and Zell excelled at that.

Harry's visit to his "sister" had been eventful. Tracie had gotten married while he was gone to the steady boyfriend she'd talked of a year ago, and was now heavily pregnant with twins. Tracie had introduced Harry to her husband, Caine Williams, who was glad to meet the man Tracie talked of with such nostalgia.

"So, you're the SeeD Harry Potter that Tracie's been talking about for so long?" Caine said, sizing Harry up. "You don't look any older than seventeen, yet she told me that you looked seventeen when you first met."

Harry shrugged. "Sorry, the reason behind that is classified, top secret info."

"So secret that you'd have to kill me if you told me?" Caine joked.

"I dunno," Harry said slowly, "taking out your vocal cords and cutting off your hands would probably keep me off the hook, but I'd rather not have to do that, especially to the husband of my big sister."

Caine, instead of paling like Harry thought he might, chuckled. "Brutally honest. I like that. So, are you going to pull the whole 'you hurt my sister and I'll kill you' routine?"

"Nah," Harry said, shaking his head. "I'm pretty sure you're smarter than that, considering that she married you. And I can't really do that act myself, since I'm away most of the time and she has no way to get a hold of me." Harry now looked directly into Caine's eyes, his tone changing. "But if I _ever _find out that you've hurt her, I'll hunt you down myself. It won't matter where you go, or under what rock you hide, I'll find you. And I promise you this: you'll live through the encounter. But life will be so painful that you'll have wished for the simple oblivion of Ultima." Caine couldn't help but shiver at this point. Harry's tone immediately lightened. "Well, now that the obligatory dark menacing promise of doom is over with, how about you and me have a drink? My treat."

Caine dumbly nodded his head and left with Harry to the nearest bar. Using Legilimency on the tipsy Caine half an hour later, Harry found that Caine was honestly in love with Tracie, and was perfectly faithful. He was a little jealous that Harry held such a prominent position in Tracie's life, but was willing to accept it.

Upon returning back to Tracie's house, Harry was given permission to touch Tracie's stomach. He was filled with awe as he felt the light kicks of the twins. _The miracle of life… _"How long?"

"I'm due in about a month and a half," Tracie replied proudly. "And I'd like it if you were their godfather."

Harry was taken aback. _Me? Godfather? _"Have you discussed this with Caine?"

"Yes, I have, and he agrees," Tracie told him.

_Am I ready to be a godfather? _Harry asked himself. He closed his eyes and came to a decision. _Rules be damned, I'm going to tell her. _"Tracie, there's something you should know."

"What is it, Harry?"

Harry stepped back and released his transformation, reverting back into his twelve-year-old self. "This is what I really look like," Harry told her solemnly. "I arrived here when I was five, ten years ago. I am fifteen years old mentally, but my physical form is twelve years old. I can change my body to look seventeen" – he did so – "and I normally do so I can do my job as SeeD. I am fifteen years old, and a mercenary to boot. Are you sure you want me as your children's godfather?"

Tracie clasped a hand to her mouth. "Oh my god…" Harry waited for it, waited for the rejection that would surely come. "When we met… you were _twelve_?"

Harry nodded. "In a nine-year-old body."

Then, unexpectedly, Tracie began to laugh. "Oh, how embarrassed you must have been! A fifteen-year-old putting the moves on a twelve-year-old!"

Harry chuckled. "I didn't even realize until my GF pointed it out to me."

They shared a laugh. "So, that means you were training to be a SeeD for seven years?" Tracie asked.

"Actually, I had been in the SeeD academy for four and a half years. The other two years were the simple academy stuff," Harry admitted. He suddenly turned serious. "But I really mean it, do you really want me as your children's godfather? I'm only fifteen."

"Yes," Tracie said simply. "You're more than mature enough, and that's enough for me. I won't tell anyone your secret."

Harry felt a surge of pride and relief flood through him. "Thank you," he said honestly and fervently. "I'll do my best to be a good godfather for them. I'll try to show up a bit more often."

"Thanks, Harry." Tracie ruffled his hair as best she could. "Guess you really are my little brother, eh?"

Harry grinned. "Yeah, big sis."

Finally, back on Earth, the day that Harry had been dreading arrived. February 14. Valentine's Day. The week leading up to it had seen more giggling girls than Harry had ever seen before. Some of the guys thought ahead and arranged flowers and chocolate for their girlfriends, but several had waited till the day before.

Even Harry's friends weren't immune. Harry had to watch Theo fail to notice Daphne's subtle advances, and if Harry was reading things right, Hermione was interested in Blaise.

On the day where couples met up for romantic get-togethers, Harry watched. His emotionless SeeD face firmly in place, Harry watched as the third years and above went to Hogsmeade for Valentine's Day. And when they were all gone, Harry walked calmly, neither slowly nor quickly, to the library, deciding to do some research into Voldemort's immortality; after two attacks in as many years, he felt it was better to actively research it instead of trying to penetrate Dumbledore's mind.

This was one of the few times of the year that Harry wished he had a girlfriend as he watched all the couples around the school grow almost sickeningly sweet and lovey-dovey. Almost everywhere he looked, there was a couple holding hands, or sharing a secret smile.

But the simple fact of the matter was, Harry wasn't interested in anyone. Sure, lots of girls both on Terra and on Earth would love to date him – evidenced by the several girls who had asked him over the years – but they were after his fame or battle skills. If he was ever to be in a relationship, he wanted it to be because his partner was genuinely interested in the real Harry Potter, not the powerful gunblade-wielding Teaching Warrior, not the famous Boy-Who-Lived. Quite frankly, Harry knew that the chances of finding someone like that willing to date him were pretty unlikely anytime soon, especially since he was well known on both worlds.

Ginny was a prime example. She'd been raised with Harry Potter as a bedtime story, creating a fantasy image of a Gryffindor knight in shining armor, who could do no wrong. But that was exactly what it was: a fantasy that didn't even come close to resembling the real deal, the real Harry Potter.

_There're Muggles too on this world, _Harry mused, _but I'd have to keep my magical nature a secret, and I'm growing weary of secrets. _Harry wasn't going to give up hope yet, but he was smart enough to know that his enemies, both political and in combat, combined with his lifestyle – killing monsters and taking on jobs as a mercenary for a living on Terra, and fighting Voldemort on Earth – wasn't exactly conducive to finding a strong, steady relationship.

That put Harry alone, _as usual, _Harry thought bitterly as he put down the book he was reading, regarding it as useless in his research. _Why am I always alone? I became a SeeD alone, I alone had the power to stock 1000 of each spell, I was sent on solo mission after solo mission, and I alone am the one destined to save this world. Now I'm to live life alone. Business as fucking usual._

_:Do not forget, Harry, that you have Seth and me,: _Quetz reassured him. _:And do not forget your friends. They are always with you in spirit, if they are not physically near. You are never alone.:_

_Sooner or later they'll all get hitched like Tracie, _Harry replied, turning a page. _And then I'll be alone again. Maybe it's better if I just cut them off now to save me the pain later. _

_:That would be very foolish, Harry. Have you forgotten already that you have been made the godfather of Tracie's unborn children?: _Quetz pointed out. _:You have been adopted into their family. Besides, recall the Mirror of Erised? What is your heart's desire?:_

_Back then, it was for all my friends and I to live and grow old in peace._

_:And now? What is your heart's desire?: _

Harry fell silent. Quetzalcoatl's query went unanswered, for a very simple reason: Harry didn't know anymore.

A couple of days later, after a difficult win against Ravenclaw in Quidditch – despite the fact that Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw Seeker, was rather cute – Harry felt like himself again. He had managed to explain off his behavior as a "stupid self-pity trip that he was still kicking himself for having." Theo and Blaise had been satisfied, but Daphne and Hermione were still suspicious. Harry silently wondered if girls had a sort of sixth sense about these things.

Harry knew that his friends were wondering what his self-pity trip had concerned, but he was fully prepared to keep that secret to his grave, no matter how far in the future, or how near to the present that may be. He wasn't about to pile his worries on them; he'd only get a bunch of pity, and they'd think twice before deciding to go out with someone. Harry didn't want that, not at all.

Instead, Harry worked on other things, such as mastering his Animagus form and researching Voldemort's immortality. He wanted to, by the end of the year, be able to transform in under three seconds and cry healing tears. He was making great progress in the speed of transformation department, but the Storm Phoenix's abilities eluded him.

Harry practiced as hard as he could on his own, dedicating less and less time for homework. His grades slowly began to slip, falling from Outstanding to Exceeds Expectations, then to Acceptable.

Finally, Snape pulled him aside after class. "Mr. Potter, your grades have been suffering in my class, yet I know you have done the research; your tests show that you know much more than your essays let on. Why are you doing this?"

Harry looked at Snape and replied truthfully, "I'm working on my Animagus form." Snape didn't need to know that Harry had completed the original transformation.

"Be that as it may, your schoolwork must come first," Snape told him. "Professors McGonagall and Flitwick are also concerned. You have maintained very good scores, right under Hermione Granger's, until recently. What has happened to you?"

"Nothing has happened to me, Professor," Harry replied politely, yet his tone carried a hint of warning. "As long as I learn the material and pass the exams, does it matter?"

"Certain parties will become involved if you appear to falter and look close to failing," Snape warned. "Including manipulative old men. If you wish to keep your cover, you must do the schoolwork as you used to."

That got through to Harry. He hadn't thought of how Dumbledore would react if Harry's grades started to drop despite being friends with Hermione. Dumbledore would investigate, and while Harry might be able to stay on his guard 100 of the time, someone would falter eventually, and the metaphorical cat would be amongst the pixies.

Harry didn't realize it, but now he stood taller, and his eyes had recovered their cunning gleam. "Thank you, Professor, for talking sense into me," Harry said formally. _What the hell was I thinking, trying to burn myself out like that? _Harry berated himself. He knew, looking back, that he had been exhausting himself with training so hard, and that couldn't have been good for his magic.

_:You just wanted to master your Storm Phoenix form before leaving Hogwarts,: _Quetz replied. _:You simply forgot to factor in the various variables.:_

_Well, this Potter's going to fix his mistakes. I will still master the Storm Phoenix form, but there is plenty of time for that. _

The next week, the teachers relaxed. Harry's work had been restored to their previous thoroughness, and he started making Outstandings once more.

Late February saw a change in the seating arrangements. Ever since she had returned to school, Ginny had been sitting with her family at the Gryffindor table, and Harry was glad for it, as it meant that her family still accepted her. Sometimes she sat with friends in Ravenclaw, but she had avoided Slytherin table with a passion.

However, in the last week of February, Ginny began sitting over at Slytherin table again. Harry got up as she hesitantly approached her old seat, and helped her down into it. "Welcome back," he said as she sat.

"Yeah."

"Hey, great to see ya, Ginny."

All of Ginny's year welcomed her back to the table, but unfortunately, one rude prick had to ruin it all. Draco Malfoy looked at her smugly. "Doesn't it just _kill _you to be with good old green and silver again? Must bring back memories, doesn't it Weaslette?"

Ginny began shivering, and Harry realized she must be reliving the memories. He glanced at Ron, who had been watching. He jerked his head at Ginny and gave Ron a look that screamed, "Get over here, she needs you." Ron nodded and got up, pointedly looking at Fred and George as well. Percy had caught Harry's eye as well, and all four Weasley brothers got up and walked over to Ginny.

Seeing that, Harry turned back to Draco, turning his full attention on him. "You're going to shut up, Draco," Harry said in a low voice. "Voldemort's not the only Parselmouth around anymore, as you well know. _Seth, insults please."_

_"Got it."_ Seth poked his head out from Harry's sleeve, looking directly at Draco. _"Ahem… You're such a snooty, attention-seeking, pasty-faced transvestite son of a whore so fat that she thought you were a white pile of shit."_

Harry was having a hard time keeping from laughing as Draco turned increasingly pale. Draco was obviously thinking that the snake was threatening him. "Thank you, Seth," Harry said calmly, turning him back into a tattoo. "Now Draco, as you were saying?"

Draco, not surprisingly, shut up. Harry glanced at Ginny, whose brothers were now standing behind and beside her, giving her their support. Ginny looked a little better now. "Mind if we join you?" Fred asked her.

"We're just here for moral support," George added.

Ginny silently nodded, and the Weasley brothers, despite being Gryffindors, sat with the Slytherins that day. Suddenly, Ginny snorted.

"What?" Ron asked.

"If only you had understood Harry's snake," Ginny told him. "It was funny."

_"I'm a 'he', not an 'it'," _Seth grumbled irritably.

_"Oh, sorry," _Ginny said without thinking, looking in the direction of Harry's arm.

_"Apology accepted."_

"What? Weaslette can speak Parseltongue too?" Draco blurted.

Daphne smirked. "At least you're not unobservant. Now, be nice to the Parselmouths of Slytherin."

Harry put a hand on Ginny's shoulder and looked at Draco coldly. "Draco, here's the deal. You leave us and our friends alone, we'll leave you alone. We're Parselmouths, and not afraid to use that to our advantage. We're Slytherins for a reason, you know." Draco merely nodded with wide eyes, scared out of his mind that there were two capable Parselmouths as his enemies now. "Good," Harry said calmly before returning to his seat and eating his lunch.

As lunch resumed, Ginny looked at Harry curiously. More specifically, she looked at his left arm where Seth was hiding as a tattoo. "Where's your snake?"

"Oh, he's under my robe. He's always there," Harry said casually. "He sleeps almost all the time from boredom, but he's a good friend."

_"Not my fault your magic is so saturated that it fills me up all the time. I don't need to eat anything else while I'm here."_

Ginny opened her mouth, but Harry beat her to it. "Seth's a magical snake. He can basically merge with my skin as a tattoo when I don't need him around." He raised his sleeve, showing the dark green magical tattoo. Seth's two-dimensional eyes opened, blinked once, and then closed once more.

"Wicked!" Fred and George exclaimed, looking over to see Harry's tattoo.

"Yeah, it makes us almost inseparable," Harry replied with a grin. "We protect each other. Ginny, Fred and George, meet Seth. _Seth, this is Ginny, Fred and George."_

"Nice to meet you," all four responded – Ginny and Seth in Parseltongue, Fred and George in English.

Harry covered up his arm again and looked at Ginny. "Ginny, I know you may be a little… uncomfortable with using Parseltongue, especially with the events of the Chamber." Sure enough, Ginny started looking very uncomfortable. "But it's an ability you should not be ashamed of. In fact, it can come in handy. For instance, it's great for sending discrete messages where an owl is too flashy. Most snakes are more than willing to pass on information, I've found, as long as you're a Parselmouth. Magical snakes are generally smarter than Muggle snakes, though."

Ginny nodded thoughtfully. _"And it's great for being able to talk to each other so no one else can understand," _Harry added with a grin. _"I could say all sorts of jokes this way that Fred and George would kill to hear." _

Ginny snorted. _"Yeah right." _

Harry grinned. _"You asked for it!"_ A minute later, a joke concerning Voldemort, Hitler, and Stalin was told, Harry's grin growing larger by the second.

Ginny tried, she really did. But she couldn't help it. She started laughing. She laughed so hard, she started crying. "Oy, what's going on?" Fred and George asked together.

Harry's grin grew. "Oh, I just told her a joke."

Ginny finally managed to calm down. "Oh, Harry, that was just _evil!_" That sent her back into hysterical fits of laughter, Harry chuckling along with her.

"What joke?" Fred asked.

"Not saying," Harry replied, his grin nearly splitting his face in half.

The twins were after him for days after that event, trying to get Harry to share the joke. Ginny wouldn't repeat it, saying that she wouldn't be able to do it justice, and would probably start laughing in the middle of it.

More time passed as Harry and his friends grew stronger. The Quidditch match against Hufflepuff was a sad affair; Hufflepuff simply didn't stand a chance, seeing as they had had to replace almost their entire Quidditch team that year and hadn't had the chance to train their new players. Harry ended the humiliation as soon as he could, finding the Golden Snitch after ten minutes of playing. In that ten minutes, Slytherin had scored 130 points, while Hufflepuff had managed 20.

Harry and his friends continued to research Voldemort's immortality, but the only possibilities they had found as of yet were the Elixir of Life from a Sorcerer's Stone – which was immediately thrown out, considering that if Voldemort had one, why did he try to steal another the year before – and an ancient legend.

"Gah!" Theo cried. "There's nothing here! I must've read through a hundred books in the last week!"

"Seventy-three, Theo," Blaise said absently, flipping a page.

"Oh! This is pretty interesting!" Hermione said in surprise.

Everyone looked at her. "What is it, Hermione?" Harry asked.

"It's a legend," Hermione answered. "Want me to read it?"

"Sure!" everyone chorused.

"Alright, here goes." Hermione took a deep breath and began to read.

_Eons ago, before modern civilization, there were three beings of Immortal power, each with mastery over a different aspect. The first had the strength of a god and the power to manipulate his physical energy into blasts of sheer power. The second, while physically moderate, had power over his spirit, and used it to enhance himself to a godlike power during his battles, and could use this power to heal himself as well. The third, however, combined his spiritual and physical strength to form magic, an awesome force that could bend reality to his will with mere intent and willpower. _

_With their power, they silently guarded their lands and the people within it from monstrous demons that killed mindlessly and mercilessly. Where did these demons come from? No one knew, not even the wise and powerful Immortals. The demons, however, were growing stronger and stronger with each assault, sending more and more powerful attacks against the Immortals. _

_The Immortals knew that eventually, the demons would overcome them even with their awesome power. The three then devised a plan that would hopefully banish the demons from their world to never return. _

_The three Immortals pooled their power and created four worlds similar to their own, close to their own world yet separate from each other. This was very taxing, even to them, so they waited a single day to recover the majority of their strength. Then, the one of strength and the one of spirit lent their power to the one of magic, who cast a spell to divide the demons among the four new worlds. _

_To keep the demons in check, the three decided to guard the worlds. The one of strength went to one world, the one of spirit to another. The one of magic, the wisest and most powerful of all, agreed to guard their home. This, however, left two worlds unguarded. So, the one of magic went to one world and spread the seeds of magic to its people. To the other, the one with the most demons, the one of magic taught how to take a demon's magic and turn it against them, and lent them powerful magical Guardians to aid them._

_Unfortunately, it was then that the Immortals realized that they would eventually die; creating the worlds and banishing the demons had used up all of their strength, and they had had to sacrifice their Immortality to protect their home. And so, they all agreed to pass down their powers, in the hopes that should great evil come again, their children would take up the burden. _

Hermione fell silent, as did everyone else. "To take a demon's magic and turn it against them?" Harry whispered. "Guardians?" Hermione nodded. "The legend… it must be true! It's talking about Terra! I take magic from the monsters and use it against them, and the Guardians are the Guardian Forces!"

"So, that means the other worlds are real as well?" Daphne asked.

Harry nodded. "It's nice to know, but not really useful. Thanks for the story, though, Hermione." Hermione nodded, and the five of them went back to work.

Little did any of them know that this legend would play a much larger part in their lives than they thought…

Harry made sure to visit Terra every weekend, and it was on one Saturday in March that a momentous occasion in Harry's life happened.

Harry and Tracie had been talking casually – Caine was at work – when suddenly she clutched her stomach in pain. Harry was up in an instant. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine," Tracie said weakly. Harry raised an eyebrow, but they continued talking. About fifteen minutes later… "Ow!"

"Are you sure you're fine?" Harry asked concernedly.

"I think… they're contractions," Tracie said.

Harry blinked. "Um, what's that mean?"

"Today's the day," Tracie said pointedly, touching one hand to her swollen belly. Thankfully, Harry understood.

Harry's jaw dropped. _I never thought that I'd be the one to take her to a hospital… _"Come on, let's get you to a hospital."

"Caine has the car," Tracie said worriedly.

"Not a problem. SeeD here, remember? I've got SeeD strength and speed. I'll carry you there," Harry said easily.

"If you're sure…"

_Junctions please. _

_:Done.:_

_Thanks. _Harry gently picked Tracie up bridal style and walked out the door. "You may want to hold on," he told her, and she tightened her grip around Harry's neck. Harry took a deep breath and began running, keeping his footsteps as light as possible. About six minutes and a dozen surprised passerby later, Harry arrived at the hospital. He entered the emergency room.

"Tracie's about to have her twins. Where do we go?" Harry asked urgently as Tracie felt another contraction.

"Birthing ward, just down the hall," the stunned nurse replied.

"Thanks." Harry carried Tracie the rest of the way. "Tracie's in the beginning stages of labor," Harry told the nearby doctor – who had been appraised of the situation by the nurse in the emergency room – gently helping Tracie lay down on the bed.

"Thank you for getting her to us so early," the doctor said. "How far apart are the contractions, ma'am?"

"About ten minutes apart. Ooh! Make that nine minutes."

"One sec," Harry told her. "I'm going to call your husband."

"Use my phone," the doctor volunteered.

"Thank you." Harry calmly dialed the number. "Hello? Caine? Good. GET YOUR ASS OVER TO THE HOSPITAL PRONTO! IT'S TIME!" Harry very calmly put the phone down. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

Caine looked around at his job at the bank. Every single person there, employee or not, was staring at him, Harry's voice had been that loud. "Um, excuse me, my wife's apparently having our kids now…" Suddenly the gravity of those words hit him. "Ah! My wife's in labor right now! Bye!" He ran out of the bank and threw himself into the car, driving like a madman to the hospital.

He parked and ran over to Harry, who was outside the emergency room. "This way," Harry told him, leading him to the birthing ward.

Caine immediately rushed to Tracie's side. "Hey beautiful, you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Tracie smiled. "Glad you got here so quickly."

Caine chuckled. "Drove like a bat out of hell. By the way, Harry, do you think anyone in Balamb didn't hear you?"

Harry grinned. "It got the job done, didn't it? Can't argue with results."

"Guess not."

Not long afterwards, Tracie was taken inside another room. Caine got up and started pacing nervously, unable to keep still like Harry, who was the picture-perfect example of calm.

"You'll wear a hole in the floor doing that," Harry pointed out.

"I don't care, it helps keep my nerves down."

About an hour later, Tracie's yells could be heard. "AH! Caine, I'm never letting you touch me again, you bastard! OH! I'm going to take your genitalia, cut them off and burn them in front of you!" Harry and Caine both winced at this point.

After a few hours, the doctor let both Harry and Caine in. The doctor turned to Caine. "Congratulations. Your wife's given birth to fraternal twins, a boy and a girl."

Harry saw a very tired-looking Tracie smiling and holding two small bundles close to her. Harry couldn't see anything, but he guessed that they were sleeping now. When she turned them so Harry and Caine could see, Harry was astonished at how tiny and fragile they seemed. He was suddenly very afraid of handling one of them. He wasn't alone, either; Caine admitted to Harry later that he was terrified of accidentally breaking them with his big hands.

"So, what are their names?" Harry asked.

Caine smiled. "The boy is Peter Brian Williams, and the girl is Carla Jennifer Williams."

"Strong names," Harry commented, unknowingly smiling at the babies. "They'll grow up to be strong, too, like their mother and father. Unfortunately, I have to go. I'll be missed on my world."

"We understand," Tracie said gently. "Go."

"I'll be back," Harry promised. "I'll see you next Saturday."

"Be safe," Tracie pleaded.

"I will." With that, Harry left.

The following morning, when he saw his friends again, he explained what just happened. "Tracie just had her kids last night," Harry told them. "Peter and Carla Williams." Suddenly, just what that meant hit him. "Holy shit, I'm their godfather." Harry staggered and leaned against the cool stone wall for support. "I'm their godfather," he repeated.

"You ok?" Hermione asked.

"I'm their godfather," Harry repeated again.

"You have said that three times now," Blaise observed.

"I think he's in shock," Daphne said, looking him over.

"Wouldn't surprise me," Theo agreed. "I mean, godfather at age twelve, sorry, fifteen mentally."

Harry eventually recovered from his shock, though it took him half of the day to be able to say anything aside from "I'm their godfather."

During his visit the next Saturday, Harry was very cautious about the babies, and refused to touch them, afraid he would accidentally hurt them. _They're tiny, and fragile, _Harry reasoned. _And I have SeeD strength. I could accidentally hurt them. _It was only when he saw Caine cradling Peter in his arm that Harry worked up the courage to ask if he could hold Carla. After a few seconds of making sure Harry was holding her right, Tracie was satisfied.

Carla wrapped her hand around Harry's finger as she slept, which made Harry's mind boggle at how small she was. Yet Harry felt immeasurably proud, almost as though she accepted him. _She isn't even awake and she's already got her godfather wrapped around her little finger, _Harry thought amusedly.

Harry looked up to see Tracie and Caine smiling at him. It was then that Harry knew: here, he had proof that even if he never found a girl to become his wife, he would always have family.

Of course, Harry quickly found out the downside. "Your turn to change them!" Caine announced, dropping off a bag of diapers and setting Peter next to Carla on the changing board.

"Oh no… no, no, no!" Harry begged. "Don't make me do this!" The smell itself was enough to gag a maggot. To top it off, both Carla and Peter were suddenly both awake and smiling at him. "Look at them! They're _grinning _at me!"

"Oh, is the big bad SeeD afraid of two little babies?" Tracie teased.

"Yes!" Harry agreed, nodding furiously. "Take mercy on this poor soul!"

"Sorry, no. Better change them now or the smell will get worse," Caine told him.

Suddenly Harry had an idea. He took out his wand. "_Wingardium Leviosa._" He levitated Peter and with a flick of his wand and focus of mind, undid the diaper. Resisting the urge to gag, Harry pointed his wand at the mess. "_Scourgify._" Instantly the smell was much better, and the mess was gone. Harry used a Switching Spell he'd recently learned in his Transfiguration studies to swap the old diaper for the new one, and then flicked his wand again, tying the diaper together again. He repeated the process for Carla.

Harry smiled. That hadn't been terribly hard at all! The only difficult part of it was maintaining the concentration for the Levitation Charm while casting other spells. He turned around to see two very jealous parents. "That is _so _not fair," Tracie whined.

Harry smirked at her. "I can do magic. You can't. Deal with it."

"Are you sure we can't do that?" Caine asked wistfully, looking at Harry's wand.

"Yes, I'm sure," Harry said sternly. "And remember, you can't tell anyone. My magic's unusual."

"We know, we know," Tracie replied exasperatedly. "But you're in charge of changing them when you're here."

"Fair enough."

Harry visited Tracie and her family every Saturday and Sunday after seeing his friends in SeeD Academy. The time for their graduation test was coming up soon, Harry knew, and his friends were training hard for it. Squall was beginning to give Harry a bit more of a challenge when they sparred, but Harry had a lot more experience than Squall.

Once, Harry asked Squall to Scan him and tell him what it said. "I can't use Scan on myself right now," Harry confessed. "I can't use Terran magic or I'll screw up one of my projects."

"Scan!" After a moment, Squall began telling Harry what it said.

_Harry James Potter (Boy-Who-Lived)_

_Race: Human_

_Weapons of Choice: Gunblade, wand, snake familiar_

_Harry Potter is famous on Terra for his travels and incredible strength and street-smarts. On Earth, Harry Potter is famous as the Boy-Who-Lived, the only one to ever survive the Killing Curse. _

_At the age of five, Harry Potter arrived on Terra and began his training. He remained on Terra for nine years, though due to the time differences, his body only aged six years. His innate magical core allows him to multiply his stocked spells, in addition to drawing and casting spells without a Guardian Force. _

_Returning to Earth to prevent the Dark Lord Voldemort from crossing over to Terra, Harry Potter has begun his world's magical schooling at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and is currently in his second of seven years. To more quickly learn Earth magic, Harry Potter can no longer use his immense stock of Terran spells._

_Special Abilities_

_Metamorphmagus: Extremely Proficient. Has strong control over entire body, but as yet cannot transform cross-gender. _

_Parselmouth: Extremely Proficient. Can speak Parseltongue at will, but does not know Parselmagic. Note: Mark of Hydra allows Harry Potter to overrule any other Parselmouth. _

_Storm Phoenix Animagus: Intermediate. Able to turn into a Storm Phoenix at will, but has not mastered its abilities._

_Current SeeD Rank: 20. _

_Threat Level: 93. _

_Note: Threat level is based on how strong Harry Potter is when using both Terran and Earth spells. Without casting Terran spells, Threat Level is 60. Without casting or junctioning Terran spells, Threat Level is 36. When forced to rely on only Earth magic, Threat Level is 23. _

"Thanks," Harry told a dumbfounded Squall. "Now let's continue our spar."

After thoroughly kicking Squall's butt, Harry thought about the scan. _Parselmagic? _Harry thought. _I should look into that… _

_:There may be some books in the Chamber of Secrets,: _Quetz pointed out. _:After all, Salazar Slytherin was a famous Parselmouth.:_

_True. Better go check it out. _

Twenty minutes later, Harry was back in the Chamber of Secrets. _"Sanath?"_

_"Yes, Harry?"_

_"I'm looking for any books on Parselmagic,"_ Harry told her. _"Do you know if Salazar Slytherin left any here?"_

_"He did, but Tom Riddle took them all with him when he left Hogwarts."_

_"Damn!" _Harry cursed. _"Oh well, I'll just have to go with what I've got. Thanks, Sanath."_

_"Anytime, Harry."_

_Well, there goes that avenue of training, _Harry thought with a sigh, starting the long climb up the stairs to Myrtle's bathroom.

_:You are quite strong already,: _Quetz pointed out. _:Threat level 93 is quite good. Few ever get that far.:_

_Yeah, you're right. I suppose I can take a break from training; after all, I'm already years ahead of everyone else in my year. _

So, Harry took a break from his magical training. It was a welcome change, as he'd been training almost all year. Harry spent the new time he had with his friends, including Ron, where they played chess quite a bit. Harry, to his consternation, never won, but Ron was pleased to have a challenging player.

Harry and the twins had a bit of a contest during this time: who could play the best prank? Harry started it off with turning the entire Gryffindor table green, and the twins countered by making Draco's clothes turn into a yellow flowered dress.

Harry upped the stakes by placing a copy of _Hogwarts, A History _by Ron's usual seat and charmed it to only be seen by him. When Ron picked it up in puzzlement, the books magically flipped to the first page, and Ron was suddenly being forced to read it, much to Hermione's delight.

Fred and George retaliated by charming the suits of armor to salute and call Harry embarrassing names every time he passed by. Harry returned fire by bribing Ron (with chocolate) into putting Itching Powder – which Harry charmed with a time-delay spell – into all of their clothes. Right in the middle of Transfiguration, the Itching Powder kicked in, resulting in an entirely embarrassing display as they tried to scratch everywhere at once.

The only time the prank war had a cease-fire was during the Gryffindor-Slytherin Quidditch match. This match was serious; both teams were well-conditioned and just itching the beat the other.

"Welcome, everyone, to the Quidditch match between Slytherin and Gryffindor!" Lee cried from the commentator box while the stands erupted in cheers.

"I want a good, clean game, boys," Madame Hooch told Wood and Flint, who merely glared at each other. Madame Hooch blew her whistle, and Harry immediately began searching for the Snitch.

His opponent, last year's Brian Jones, flew up to him. "I've gotten a lot better than last year," Jones told Harry seriously. "So this time, we're rivals!"

Harry couldn't help but grin. "Right! Good luck to ya!"

"Ha! You'll need it more than me!" Jones took off, looking for the Snitch himself.

"Chaser Johnson has the Quaffle, she's taking it in, passes to Bell, passes back to Johnson, shoots… blocked by Slytherin Keeper Flint! Slytherin has the Quaffle…"

Harry tuned out Lee's commentary, instead focusing his attention to finding that elusive golden ball with wings. Suddenly, he spotted it down near the ground, and immediately shot after it. Jones, seeing him, shot after him.

Then, the very unlikely decided to show itself. Fred had sent a Bludger Harry's way, but he had misaimed it due to being momentarily distracted by a Slytherin Chaser racing right by him. The Bludger hit the Snitch, knocking it out of sight. Fred, seeing his accomplishment, looked pleased.

Harry cursed under his breath and rose up again, looking for the Snitch. After another few minutes of searching, Jones suddenly rocketed off toward the Gryffindor end of the field. _Has he seen the Snitch? _Harry took off after him, not wanting to risk being wrong. When Jones angled himself downwards into a dive, Harry followed for a couple of seconds, but quickly realized that it was a feint when he still couldn't see the Snitch.

"Nice try, Jones!" Harry called out.

A grinning Jones pulled up and out. "Worth a shot, Potter."

Harry's sharp eyes suddenly locked onto a small golden ball, hovering just behind Jones. _How do I keep Jones from seeing what I'm doing… _Harry repressed a smirk, having an idea. It was absolutely insane, but he had to try.

Harry slowly flew over to Jones, carefully keeping his eyes off the Snitch. "You almost had me there. You have now officially been added to the list of Seekers I have to watch out for."

Jones looked at Harry with a grin, proud to hear that. Then Harry's left hand lashed out like a snake, and Jones ducked by reflex. "What the hell was that, Potter?!"

Harry showed him the Snitch. "It was right behind you."

Jones stared at him, gobsmacked. Then he shook his head ruefully. "Darn it."

"Better luck next year!" Harry told him cheerfully as Lee announced the final score. Slytherin had won, 220 to 160.

After the Quidditch match, the prank war was back on, and now Fred and George had a debt to settle. For the next two weeks, Fred and George tried to catch Harry in a prank, but his magical sense detected each and every one of their attempts. Finally giving up after two weeks of unsuccessful pranking, they complained to Harry about it. "How do you always know when we're trying to prank you?" Fred asked.

"Yeah, it's just not fair how you always seem to tell!" George added.

"That, my friends, is a secret," Harry said with a smirk.

"How about we trade secrets?" George suggested. "You tell us yours, we'll show ours?"

"You mean, you'll tell me how you always know when I'm in the castle or not?" Harry asked eagerly. Fred and George had told Harry that they knew, and had given several examples. They had promised not to tell, though.

Fred and George looked at each other. "Yeah," Fred said finally.

Harry tossed over the idea in his mind. "Deal. I can sense magic, and no matter what prank you use, you use magic, so I always know."

"Wicked!" Fred exclaimed.

"That's gotta be useful," George added. "Anyway, for our part of the deal…"

Fred pulled out an old parchment. "This, you see…"

"… is the Marauder's Map!" they finished together.

Harry looked at it. He could sense some very powerful magic in it, despite the old look. "How does it work?"

"We solemnly swear we are up to no good," Fred and George said together, tapping the map with their wands. With that, black ink started to run across it, and quickly formed a map of Hogwarts. _Prongs, Padfoot, Moony and Wormtail are proud to present: the Marauder's Map_

"As you can see, it's a map of Hogwarts," Fred proclaimed.

"But not only that, it can also see each person on the grounds…"

"… and all the secret passageways!"

"Awesome!" Harry whispered, looking at the map. "How'd you get it?"

"Well, in our first year…"

"… when we were young and innocent…"

Harry glared at them. Fred coughed. "OK, more innocent than we are now," he amended.

"We were in Filch's office for an incident with dungbombs, and we saw this drawer of his full of confiscated stuff," George continued.

Harry grinned. "Let me guess. You had a few dungbombs left, and you threw them to distract Filch's attention away from your twin grabbing a handful of stuff from the confiscated drawer?"

"Got it in one," Fred said with a grin to match Harry's. "This, my friend, is the secret to our success as pranksters."

"We owe Prongs, Padfoot, Moony and Wormtail so much," George said with a fake tear, wiping his eyes.

"How much do you want for it?" Harry asked. _Oh, this would be really useful! _

"Fund our joke shop for the first year," Fred answered, not expecting Harry to actually take it.

"Done," Harry said instantly.

Fred blinked, and then gathered George into a huddle. After a couple of minutes, they straightened up. "Sorry about that. My brother and I…"

"… have come to an agreement. We want to be able to use…"

"… the Marauder's Map next year, since it is our OWL year."

"We'd like the chance to use it to go into Hogsmeade and get more ingredients for developing our joke products," George explained.

"Not to mention grab a butterbeer every now and again," Fred added.

"So here is what we propose. You agree to give us one thousand Galleons to fund our joke shop by the end of next year…"

"… and when we get off the ground, you'll get five percent of our profits, and the map is yours after our OWL year. We'll share it until then. Deal?"

"Deal," Harry agreed. They shook on it, and with that, sealed the deal.

It was decided momentarily that, for the time being, Fred and George would hold onto the map. Harry would be allowed to borrow it when requested for a maximum of three days per week, with an exception if and only if Harry had a very good reason that he hadn't foreseen.

Harry was _very _satisfied with these arrangements. That map would be a very useful thing. However, there was something strange about it. Harry's magical sense went understandably haywire on it – after all, something so complex had to have dozens of powerful spells on it – but part of the magic felt familiar somehow.

Harry shrugged it off. _Ah well, it doesn't really matter. _

Unfortunately for Harry, Dumbledore had only previously that day read through some of the memories of Fred and George after one of their pranks. They had fairly impressive natural shields – Dumbledore believed it was from the magical twin bond they shared – but it was no match for his subtle Legilimency.

He'd been most interested to find that Harry had, every Saturday for quite some time it seemed, exited the castle, yet he had not visited Hogsmeade. Dumbledore knew that for a fact, as he made it a point to visit Madame Rosmerta occasionally; she often knew all sorts of new information. Harry had never made an appearance, and the Three Broomsticks was the hot spot for students.

_But, if Harry hadn't been visiting Hogsmeade, where had he been visiting? _Dumbledore had to think about this one for a while, but he finally figured it out. _There are very few places in Hogwarts that aren't on that incredible map… and among those, it has to be somewhere that Harry could spend a great deal of time. That means, either it's the Room of Requirements, or the Chamber of Secrets. _

Dumbledore wasn't sure which of those options he preferred. _On the one hand, the Room of Requirements get him anything he needs from within the castle, which means he could even learn from some of the books in the Restricted Section of the library. He could also make it unfindable as well. _

_On the other hand, the Chamber of Secrets is an unknown quantity. I don't know if there are any books down there, but if there are, surely Tom would have taken them with him when he left? Unless they're charmed never to leave the Chamber… On top of that, only a Parselmouth can open the Chamber. The sink needs to hear the Parseltongue password._

Dumbledore's eyes widened as he considered another idea. _But Harry doesn't actually need to be there, does he? Young Ginny can take me down there just as well, since she's a Parselmouth too. I might as well check to see if Harry's been using the Chamber. _

The next weekend, Harry suddenly felt very on edge. He was leading his friends to the Chamber of Secrets as usual, early in the morning, when he felt an inexplicable feeling of dread. He shivered.

"Something wrong?" Hermione asked.

"I don't know," Harry answered. "I'm getting the feeling that something is about to happen, something bad."

"What could happen?" Theo asked with a grin. "We're getting stronger and stronger, and you're unlocking more and more of your magic."

"I dunno," Harry said slowly, "I've survived this long by trusting my feelings. They usually turn out right."

"But we don't even know what you're feeling anxious about." Daphne pointed out.

"Daphne is right," Blaise agreed. "We do not know if the event you feel anxious about will happen if we go or not."

Harry nodded reluctantly. "Fine. But stay alert; I may need to grab you quick and bring you back. _Open up." _

The entrance to the Chamber opened as usual, and Harry's friends one by one jumped down the slide. Harry hesitated before jumping in himself, though. But when his sharp ears heard two sets of footsteps coming down the hallway, Harry's eyes widened. He jumped into the slide, and by now he could feel two magical essences he recognized – Dumbledore and Ginny. _"Close!" _

Harry landed on his feet and rolled. "Hurry, hurry, hurry! Dumbledore's coming, and he's brought Ginny to open the Chamber!"

His four friends glanced at him, then back at each other. "Oh bloody hell," Theo cursed, effectively summing up their joint thoughts. They began running for the portal. Harry opened up the Inner Chamber where the portal lay, and his friends immediately ran through the portal.

Harry turned to statue of Slytherin. _"Sanath! I hate to do this, but I have an order! Dumbledore and Ginny are coming down momentarily; I need you to go lie to Ginny if she or Dumbledore asks and tell her that no one has been in here since the week after the diary was destroyed! Tell her that I was here looking for anything Riddle had left behind, but under no circumstance tell her of the portal!" _

_"Understood, Harry Potter." _Sanath began slithering down to meet the intruders.

_"And remember to keep your eyes closed!" _Now that Sanath was able to at least delay them, Harry needed to focus. _What do I do? I can't shut down the portal and erase the markers in time, and even if I do, then things may get worse. Besides, Dumbledore'll detect the magical backwash in no time! _

_:How about a Notice-Me-Not Charm on the portal?:_

_No can do. The portal is so magically intense, that a Notice-Me-Not Charm would only draw more attention to it, and then Dumbledore would know that Sanath was lying. If all else fails, I can pretend that I knew nothing about it, that it must have been recent. Think, Potter, think!_

_:You should at least close the door.:_

_Right. __"Close."_ The large double-doors swung shut soundlessly. _I suppose I could bluff, _Harry thought.

_:No, you closed that option when you told Sanath to claim you hadn't been here since soon after you destroyed the diary.:_

_Curses, you're right. Come on, Potter!_

_:What if you were to leave through the portal, and use a temporary portal to return elsewhere in Hogwarts?:_

_Workable, but then Dumbledore would at least suspect that I built it and thus, that I have broken his Memory Charm. Unless… that's it! _

_:What?:_

_I'll get Odin to come through. He can pretend to have just opened the portal, and then he can shift the blame away from me!_

_:Well, we'd best go then.:_

Harry jumped through the portal. Just his luck, though, Odin was nowhere in sight. "Odin! ODIN! Where the bloody hell did you go!" There was no response. "Damn it! Guess I'll just have to pose as him, then."

Harry Metamorphed into Odin's shape and then stepped through the portal, waiting.

Dumbledore finished sliding down, Ginny following shortly afterwards. They began walking down the tunnel, only to see the Basilisk with its eyes shut appear to awaken from slumber. _"Who is here?"_

_"It's me, Ginny, and our teacher, Dumbledore," _Ginny introduced.

Dumbledore stepped forward. "I'm curious if Harry Potter has returned here recently?" Ginny translated.

_"No. Harry Potter, the other speaker, has not returned for months ever since failing to find anything of value here."_

"He was searching for something?" Dumbledore asked eagerly.

_"Yes and no. He was seeing if anything was left so he could return it to Dumbledore. He said that surely he would know what to do with anything he found here."_

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled merrily. "Did he find anything?"

_"No. I helped him search, but Tom Riddle took everything with him when he left Hogwarts, even the books."_

"I see. Thank you for your help." _A snake cannot lie to a Parselmouth, I know that much. Drat! So that leaves the Room of Requirements, or an as-yet unfound room. _

The Basilisk nodded its great head, never once having opened its eyes. Dumbledore turned to Ginny, who was shivering profusely now, recalling bad memories. "Come, Ginny," Dumbledore said softly. "Let us return to the surface."

Ginny nodded and made the stairs back up to Myrtle's bathroom. Dumbledore followed, wondering just what Harry was up to. Out of curiosity, Dumbledore took out his wand and laid it on his palm. "_Point me Harry Potter." _

The wand span around until it pointed reliably back through the Chamber of Secrets. Dumbledore's eyes narrowed, and he was about to turn around when suddenly, his wand began to spin out of control. It was as if it could no longer get a lock on Harry's magical signature.

What he didn't know was that just then, Harry had finally figured out that they weren't coming, and had left for Terra. Nevertheless, Dumbledore knew this merited more investigation. And that meant, it was time to perform his Locator Ritual again. He would find out once and for all just what Harry James Potter was doing.

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Uh-oh, Dumbledore's on the warpath! Will he find out Harry's secret? And if he does, what will Harry do? Find out next time, on ... wait a minute, this is sounding WAY too much like one of those anime shows on TV. Just read and review, will ya?


	7. It's Your Move

Whoops, forgot to put a few things in!

Disclaimer: None of the books are only 7 chapters long. Of course, my chapters are longer than JKR's, but who's counting?

Chapter 7: It's your move

It took two weeks for Dumbledore to acquire everything he needed for his Locator Ritual. He still had part of Harry's old blanket – from when he was five – so that would do nicely for the personal aspect of it.

So, two weeks from his voyeur into the Chamber of Secrets, Dumbledore was ready to cast the ritual. He had rearranged all appointments, and changed the password on his gargoyle. He had awoken very early for a reason. He wanted to know what time Harry was suddenly untraceable with the Point Me Charm, and then the ritual required two hours to work properly.

Every ten minutes after four o'clock in the morning, Dumbledore cast the Point Me Charm. Finally, at 5:40, Dumbledore's Point Me charm no longer worked. He stood in the middle of the circle he had drawn and began the ritual.

Two hours later, Dumbledore was furious. No, he was beyond furious, he had gone straight to rage. "How did he break my Memory Charm?!" Dumbledore screamed, throwing one of his many trinkets against the wall, shattering it into hundreds of pieces. "How did Harry hide this knowledge from Legilimency?! His Occlumency has been down for over a year!"

The many portraits of previous Headmasters tried to calm him down, but one in particular was impressed at how Harry Potter had fooled Dumbledore. Phineas Nigellus, the least popular Headmaster in the history of Hogwarts, snickered quietly at how the great Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, had been deceived by a child less than a tenth of his age. _It's only fitting that it would be a Slytherin to do that, _he thought amusedly.

Dumbledore finally calmed down, much to Phineas's disappointment. "I need to Obliviate him again," Dumbledore said aloud. "This time I'll use more power, since his mind's more fully developed. And then I'll place a power-limiting curse on him, just in case he has enough power to cancel it out. He's had it far too easy with learning spells this year… I need Harry to advance at the same pace as the other students."

Dumbledore walked over to the fireplace and threw down some Floo powder. "Severus Snape!" When Snape's head poked out of the fireplace, Dumbledore immediately started talking. "Harry Potter has somehow broken the Memory Charm I placed on him. Bring him here, by force if necessary."

"Yes sir. I will be there as soon as I can find him." Snape's face curled into a sneer before popping out of the fireplace.

Harry was having a wonderful day. He had sparred with his friends, and they were advancing greatly. He had no doubt they would be very powerful someday. Then Harry had visited Tracie and her family, and they exchanged stories of their past.

So it was with a small smile on his face that Harry walked down the hallways that afternoon to Flitwick's office for his weekly tutoring in Charms. He saw Snape along the way. "Hello, Professor."

"Hello, Mr. Potter. The Headmaster wants to see you," Snape said.

Harry nodded, his face turning serious. "OK. Any idea what it's about?"

"Yes," Snape confirmed. "Of what, I cannot say."

"Is that because you don't know?"

"No."

Harry got the message. _Loyalty Vow to Dumbledore blocking him. _"Will something detrimental to me happen in the next twenty minutes?"

"Yes."

"Damn." _Dumbledore's discovered the Memory Charm failure. _

"I share your sentiments."

"Is it safe to say that you've been ordered to take me there by force if I resist?"

"Yes."

_I need to stay here to learn magic, and besides, I can't just abandon my task of resurrecting the honor of Slytherin. I've done well, but it's not enough yet. _

_:That means that you must fool the Headmaster once again.:_

_Yeah. Either that, or convince him that it wouldn't be in his best interests to stop me. Perhaps I should mention the prophecy?_

_:Perhaps. What will you do if he tries to Memory Charm you again?:_

_I'll fight back. Promise me that you'll keep out of any attacks on my Occlumency shields. If Dumbledore breaks through and Memory Charms me, I'm going to need you to break it down again._

_:I understand.: _

_In the meantime, however, I want you to junction my best spells. _

_:Done.:_

_Thanks. _By this point, they had reached the stone gargoyle blocking the stairs to Dumbledore's office. "Acid Pops."

Thirty seconds later, Harry and Snape were outside of the door. Snape knocked. "Come in," Dumbledore's voice said pleasantly, and Harry walked inside, Snape behind him. "Hello, Harry."

Harry forced a smile on his face. "To what do I owe this pleasure, Professor?"

"I was simply wondering how you were doing. By the way, you've been exiting the castle grounds for quite some time now. Where have you been?" Dumbledore asked kindly, knowing the answer full well.

Harry shrugged, managing a sheepish grin. "My sweet tooth has gotten a bit out of hand lately, so I visit Honeydukes in Hogsmeade on Saturdays to stock up on Chocolate Frogs. Then I explore a bit and then come back."

Dumbledore shook his head. "Harry, Harry… please don't lie to me. I know you've been visiting Terra."

Harry's smile evaporated, leaving a deadly calm mask in its place. Harry slammed an extra shield over his thoughts and reinforced his inner shield. "Indeed? It seems I have been caught, then," he said with a cold amusement. "How did you determine that, if I may ask?"

"I am the most powerful wizard in the world for a reason, Harry," Dumbledore said with a smirk. "I designed a Locator Ritual based on one of your old belongings. It traces your magical signature through the dimensions."

"I see… So, Dumbledore, what shall we do now? You know that I have broken your Memory Charm and regained all my knowledge of what I have done. You also know there is no chance in hell that I'll ever trust you again. What's more, there is a certain prophecy about me, and you know it."

Harry was bluffing now, but it paid off. Dumbledore looked absolutely gobsmacked, something Snape was definitely pleased to see. "You know the prophecy?"

"Of course," Harry said merrily, glad that his gamble had paid off.

Dumbledore sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I'll just have to Obliviate that from your memory as well. Memory Charms are such useful things."

_On second thought, shit. Time for another bluff. _"I am magically bonded with Sanath in the Chamber, you know. I told her that if I were to be Memory Charmed again, she was to start randomly attacking teachers at night."

"It's a good thing we have another Parselmouth loyal to me to take me down there so I may kill the Basilisk in its sleep then," Dumbledore countered.

"I changed the password for opening the Chamber of Secrets," Harry said smoothly. "Neither she nor Tom Riddle will ever use it again." _Note to self: change the password to Chamber of Secrets. _

"There is more than one way into the Chamber," Dumbledore replied. "Fawkes the phoenix can bypass any and all wards and fire-flash us into the Chamber."

"Only if Fawkes or his bonded has been there, and neither he nor you have!" Harry countered smugly.

"All snakes must answer to a Parselmouth, and Ginny will control the Basilisk," Dumbledore said assuredly.

"But if two Parselmouths give contradicting orders, whoever's more powerful magically will win," Harry lied. "It's pretty safe to assume I'm more powerful than a first year."

"Then I'll just use a magic-suppressing charm on you," Dumbledore concluded. "Not that I wasn't planning on doing so already…"

"You seem to have the answer for everything," Harry said amusedly, though inside he was not so confident. "But not this!" Harry ran with super-speed and threw himself out the window. He landed on his feet easily, his junction-enhanced muscles and legs absorbing the impact. He looked up at the window, where Dumbledore looked furious. "Ha! _The most powerful wizard in the world _is beaten by a twelve-year-old! _Accio Nimbus 2000!_"

"Wait right there!" Dumbledore bellowed. "Fawkes!"

"I don't think so, Dumbledore!" Harry sneered as his broom rocketed towards him. He clutched it and hopped on. By now, half of the school was looking outside of every window they could find, so Harry decided to take advantage. "_Sonorous. _Students of Hogwarts! Your Headmaster is a manipulative bastard trying to Memory Charm me to be his perfect little weapon, and I'm sick of it! You'll never, _ever, _see me again! To my friends, I apologize. To my enemies, I say good riddance!"

Harry kicked off with his broom and began flying away with a smirk. _Let's see how Dumbledore deals with every student in Hogwarts hearing how much a bastard he is, not to mention losing his little weapon. _

_:Are you really never going back?:_

_Oh, I'll be back… but they won't know it. Being a Metamorphmagus is quite handy, you know. _

_:Ah. Quite cunning and sneaky.: _

_Thank you._

_-------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

_This is not turning out to be a good day…_

That was quite an understatement. Not only had Harry escaped his clutches early that afternoon, but now half of the school had heard his announcement. Slytherin House, the one place Dumbledore hadn't been able to fully control, was helping to feed the new rumors and was for once encouraging people to believe Harry Potter.

Harry's friends were being most difficult as well. Harry had evidently hidden his tracks well, as they appeared to be quite surprised at Harry's claim and departure. They weren't quite sure what they believed, but were telling people about Harry and pointing out how he had never once called anyone "mudblood" and how he had even helped Hufflepuffs and treated them fairly.

The Weasleys were perhaps the most outspoken ones in favor of Harry. Fred and George had told about how they had cornered him one day the previous year and basically threatened to torture him – at which point they had very genuine looks of sorrow – but how Harry had only done enough damage to make them think. Ron and Ginny repeatedly told how Harry had saved Ginny's life down in the Chamber of Secrets. Percy reminded everyone of how Harry had always followed the rules except when his friends were the ones suffering from them.

And the strangest element of them all, Draco Malfoy himself had pronounced that Harry Potter was just and honorable. "Despite the fact that he and I were enemies, he never actively used any of his abilities to lord it over anyone else, even when he had the opportunity. He's entirely too Gryffindor-ish to lie to all of us like that. Besides, why would he leave? He was just getting all you fools to respect him. He must have had a good reason." Of course, several people had fainted at the sight, and some of the Astronomy students were checking the stars for signs of the end of the world.

In essence, Harry had, in a few sentences, thrown the whole school into chaos.

Dumbledore rubbed his temples. Thankfully, he had already decided what he'd make everyone believe, which was very helpful. He would tell the students at dinner that Harry had been possessed by the spirit of Voldemort, and that Dumbledore had been about to exorcise him when Voldemort leapt out the window and yelled at the school. It was a plausible explanation, so that hopefully took care of the rumors department.

Unfortunately, Dumbledore had another problem, the problem of finding Harry Potter again. Harry _was, _despite everything, the Chosen One of the prophecy, destined to kill Voldemort once and for all. However, with him gone, there was a very good chance that he would return to Terra and never come back.

_Damn it, I cannot let that happen! _Dumbledore thought furiously. He had to find Harry, but his phoenix was refusing to find Harry and fire-flash him to Hogwarts.

"How about you fire-flash me to Harry, then?" Dumbledore asked exasperatedly. Fawkes hesitated, but then nodded, extending his tail feathers. _About time, _Dumbledore thought in frustration as he took hold.

Harry had, shortly after leaving Hogwarts, already visited the Chamber of Secrets – having traveled there by temporary portal – and changed the password to _"Use it well." _

When he was done there, Harry had created another temporary portal out and arranged with Tom at the Leaky Cauldron to be staying under the alias Jack Norrington. Of course, Harry was disguised using his Metamorph powers.

After making the arrangements, Harry had left for Diagon Alley and changed back into his normal self. He was half-tempted to return to Terra until the next year began, but he couldn't do that; he knew that Voldemort was out there somewhere, and he couldn't afford to stay there for the summer, as much as he wanted to.

Harry was considering using the Chamber of Secrets as his home base, but there were several things to take into consideration. For one thing, while the Chamber of Secrets was protected from anyone entering without his permission, Harry was a little wary of accidentally affecting the portal by practicing magic. Furthermore, Harry wasn't sure if Dumbledore could get Fawkes to fire-flash him to Harry based on his magical signature, and he didn't want to take any unnecessary risks.

On the other hand, staying at the Leaky Cauldron had its downsides as well. While Harry would be able to explore and buy what he needed, he wasn't able to practice magic outside of Hogwarts without being detected. Heck, he didn't even know how the Ministry of Magic detected underage spells. For that matter, Harry didn't know if they could detect Animagi transformations if it was underage, so Harry couldn't practice in his Storm Phoenix form either.

_That doesn't leave many options, _Harry mused while walking around. _Looks like I need to send an owl to Griphook. Wait a minute, Hedwig! I completely forgot about her! _

Almost as if it was on cue, a snow-white owl flew down, and Harry was shocked to recognize it as Hedwig. She hooted at Harry, and Harry felt as if he could almost understand her, but not quite. One thing was for sure, though, Hedwig was scolding him immensely.

"Yes, Hedwig, I'm sorry," Harry soothed. "I didn't plan on leaving, it was a spur-of-the-moment thing."

"Hoot, hoot hoot!"

"I promise not to do it again." Hedwig gave a self-satisfied hoot. "Hedwig, it's not like I want you to just leave me, but I'm going to need you to stay low for a while."

"Hoot?"

"Er, you're a bit, well, easy to notice," Harry said, struggling for words. Hedwig ruffled up her feathers impressively, and Harry had to stop from laughing. "Yes, I know you're proud of it, but, well, you're kind of well known to be my owl. And since I'm trying to hide from Dumbledore and everyone else, having you near me will make it easier for them to find me."

Hedwig slowly nodded. "Hoot. Hoot hoot?"

"Yeah, I think I understand. You want me to use a spell to change how you look, so you can stay near me?" Hedwig nodded. "That sounds pretty good. Tell you what, tonight you come with me to the Chamber of Secrets. I know I can do magic there, and then I'll give you a whole new look, ok?"

"Hoot."

"Great. You know where I'm staying at the Leaky Cauldron?" Hedwig nodded. "Good. See you tonight."

Hedwig was about to take off when there was a sudden flash of fire in front of Harry. Hedwig leapt off of Harry's arm and perched in a tree while Harry fell into a defensive stance, wand out and at the ready. The fire dissipated momentarily to reveal Dumbledore and Fawkes. "What the hell are you doing here?" Harry snarled. "You're trying my already-thin patience."

Fawkes trilled sadly, but Dumbledore looked at Harry with an incredulous look as he flicked his wand and created Silence and Notice-Me-Not wards on the area. "I'm trying _your _patience?" Dumbledore repeated. "Harry, you must recall that I, as Headmaster of Hogwarts and Potions Professor, have very little time to spare…"

"… and yet you found the time to come after me," Harry observed. "Forget it, Dumbledore, I'm not going to be your pawn."

"But surely, you have a duty to the rest of the world to get rid of Voldemort," Dumbledore argued pleadingly. "You know that the Dark Lord marked you as his equal when he attacked you that Halloween! You alone have the power to defeat him!" His carefully-planned way to godhood was falling apart at the seams.

"Duty to the world?" Harry asked with a condescending sneer, which looked particularly out of place on a twelve-year-old. "I don't think so, Dumbledore. And I alone have the power to defeat him? Hmph. You claim to be more powerful than me, and I have reason to believe that you know the secret to Voldemort's lingering as a spirit. Why don't _you _take care of that, and save the world?" Nevertheless, Harry was gaining more information. _I was marked as his equal? Sounds like it's related to the prophecy. He probably means my lightning scar. _

Dumbledore glared at Harry. "Because fate dictated that _'one must die by the other's hand, for neither can live while the other survives,' _remember?" _Did he lie, and not truly know the prophecy? Surely that line alone would have stuck in his head. _

"Technically, I already did kill him," Harry reminded Dumbledore casually. "When I rebounded his curse as a one-year-old. He's a mere spirit now, and I'm pretty sure that qualifies as dead. You can finish the job unless he somehow resurrects himself."

"Voldemort is neither dead nor living," Dumbledore countered. "Ghosts do not have any powers aside from being able to fly or go through walls, but Voldemort, as a spirit, still has the magical power of possession in addition to all that! Magic is essential to life, but the dead cannot use it! He is not dead!"

_:He's got a point,: _Quetz was forced to admit.

_I know. _"So are you going to tell me Voldemort's secret to immortality or not?" Harry asked flatly. When Dumbledore hesitated, Harry nodded. "That's what I thought. In that case, we have nothing further to discuss."

"A mere twelve-year-old underage wizard knows _nothing _about matters as important as this!" Dumbledore suddenly boomed angrily. "Even if I told you, you wouldn't know what to do with it! You are far too young to understand!"

Harry wanted to reply to that very, very badly. _Oh yeah? How about a fifteen-year-old SeeD with thousands of kills under his belt? _

Dumbledore calmed himself down with a couple of deep breaths. "Harry, you need my guidance in order to kill him once and for all. I should know, after all, as I defeated Grindelwald half a century ago. That is why I Obliviated you the first time; I needed to be able to mold you into what you needed to be in order to destroy Voldemort. You need not only the skills, but the personality. I had full intentions of restoring your memory after you defeated him," he lied blithely. _I planned on absorbing your power for myself to become immortal. But perhaps if Harry believes that, I can convince him to undergo the Memory Charm again. _"That's also why I had you lower your Occlumency shields; I needed to be able to monitor your growth and make adjustments. I originally felt that Gryffindor would be the best place, but you were making remarkable progress."

Harry smirked. "And you know what? When I looked into the Mirror of Erised on Christmas Day in my first year, your Memory Charm broke. So I was 'making remarkable progress' for a year and a half before you found out."

"What? But your Occlumency shields, they were down!" Dumbledore sputtered.

"So? If I never think about a Memory Charm, you never read those thoughts. I forced myself to think like that in front of you so you wouldn't suspect."

"Do your friends know?"

"No," Harry lied bluntly. "You may have a blind spot for me, but you treat the other students fairly most of the time. I didn't see the need to ruin that for them."

"Won't you please come back to Hogwarts?" Dumbledore pleaded. "You would have the opportunity to stay with your friends and learn more magic!" _Not to mention I would have more opportunities to Obliviate you into my soldier. _

Apparently Harry was thinking along the same lines. "And give you more chances to Obliviate me? I think not. The only way I'm going back to Hogwarts is if you give a Wizard's Oath not to Obliviate me, nor to arrange for me to be Obliviated."

Dumbledore glared. "I'll have you know that as the Head of the Wizengamot, I cannot make such an oath when I may have legal reason to do so later. I would lose my job! Can't we make a compromise?"

"And then have you Obliviate me later to forget what you'll give up? No."

If Dumbledore didn't know any better, he'd have thought that Harry was reading his mind, with how he'd almost instantly assessed when Dumbledore was going to do. _He does not think like a twelve-year-old… he thinks like Mad-Eye Moody. _His mind raced to come up with a possible answer. He knew of one off the top of his head: dueling Harry until he was beaten and then Obliviating him. But that was hardly the best answer in the long run; what if Harry somehow regained his memory again? _It's not likely that he'll find the Mirror of Erised again, though, especially after I moved it to my manor… _Dumbledore thought to himself.

Harry, on the other hand, was now thinking about how he was going to get back into Hogwarts to complete his education. He had just realized that he couldn't run to Terra because he couldn't draw Voldemort there, and he couldn't escape Dumbledore on Earth because of his Locator Ritual. That left only two options: find a way to mask his magical signature, or stay at Hogwarts. _I can't just acquiesce now. _Harry repressed the urge to sigh. _Looks like I'm going to have to be Obliviated. Quetz, I'm trusting you to break down the Memory Charm soon if he penetrates the inner shields. _To help Dumbledore believe that his outer shields were his only shields, Harry began creating memories of a peaceful, solitary life with monks where Harry had learned patience and the ways of the sword, but his master had been killed to save the temple.

_:Yes, Harry.:_

_Question is, how do I get myself Obliviated without making Dumbledore suspect that I have a way around it? _Thankfully, though, Dumbledore answered that question for him by whipping his wand and silently shooting a red light at Harry, who recognized it as a Stunner.

_Damn it! I haven't finished making the memories yet! _Harry dodged out of the way. _Good thing I've been practicing my spells. _"_Stupefy!_"

Dumbledore side-stepped easily and flicked his wand, creating a shimmering silver shield of magic around him. Then he swished his wand and pointed at a nearby trashcan, which promptly transformed into a wolf. Snarling, the wolf lunged at Harry, who backed up rapidly.

"_Wingardium Leviosa!_" Harry's spell picked up the wolf and he flicked his wand to send it careening at Dumbledore, who with another silent spell transformed the wolf into a bluebird which flew away.

The whole while, Harry was creating memories. Finally, he had gotten enough, in his opinion, to convince Dumbledore that he was looking at the real thing. Now he just needed to be Obliviated. Thankfully for him, Dumbledore was looking to end the match just as quickly as he, and sent another Stunner at him. Harry almost dodged, but let his reflexes slow enough that he was clipped in the side. He was knocked unconscious.

Dumbledore stood over Harry. "Now, Harry, time to be the savior the world needs you to be. _Obliviate!_"

Dumbledore's powerful Memory Charm slammed into Harry's outer shields, and after several attempts he made it in. This time, Dumbledore made sure to view the memories. _Hmm, he was raised by monks? Oh, his master died, that explains the bitterness and sarcasm. Hmph. This time, there will be no mistakes! His mind is developed enough for me to permanently get rid of his memories for good. _Dumbledore began forcefully deleting Harry's pre-Hogwarts memories permanently and replacing them with memories of a slightly-abused childhood at the Dursleys. Then he did a basic "search and destroy" for anything related to Terra.

Quetzalcoatl was hiding in Harry's inner Occlumency shield, keeping very quiet and still so as not to alert Dumbledore to his presence. He was pleased to see that Dumbledore had fallen for Harry's bait, and Harry had once again circumvented the old man's Memory Charm.

Unfortunately for Harry, Dumbledore then began waving his wand in an intricate manner. "_Magicus Potente Dulak!_" A black beam hit Harry, and Quetzalcoatl could feel Harry's magic start being contained. About seventy percent of Harry's power, and seventy percent of his Terran spells, was now inaccessible, sealed away. But Quetzalcoatl knew that so much magic could only be held back for so long; the seal would last for less than three years without interference. And, by golly, Quetzalcoatl was going to interfere.

When Dumbledore was done, he swiftly created a Portkey to Hogwarts and set Harry down on the couch. He had a speech to the school to give at dinner.

Harry woke up with a splitting headache, but not coming from his scar. "Urgh… where am I?" He looked around. _Dumbledore's office, _he noted. _How'd I get here? _Harry quickly reviewed his memories, and was pleased to see that he still remembered all of his memories of Terra. _Quetz, you there?_

_:Yes. I am glad to see you have retained your memories.:_

_Me too. It's scary to think that maybe I'm not really who I think I am, that everything that I know was false, a mere creation of a power-hungry bastard. You, Quetz, are my proof of reality. Now, let's see what memories Dumbledore's given me… _Harry began inspecting the memories outside of his inner shield.

Half an hour later, Harry was most displeased. _There was absolutely nothing of use! Damn it!_

_:At least you will be able to continue your education.: _

_Very true. Do you think I'll still be able to train with Flitwick?_

Quetz paused. _:No. Dumbledore likely knows about him, and has by now probably stopped him from training us any longer. You can try though.:_

_I plan to. I wonder what time it is? _Harry looked around and finally saw a clock. _Ten till eight. Hmm. Didn't dinner end five minutes ago? _

_:I believe so.:_

Just then, Dumbledore walked in. Harry quickly injected confusion into his outer memories, and Dumbledore smiled. "Hello Harry."

"Professor? What happened? The last thing I remember is being called up to your office…"

Dumbledore nodded. "When you destroyed the diary in the Chamber of Secrets, part of Tom's magic managed to find a new host: your scar. Tom possessed you earlier when seeing me, and ran from the school. I managed to eventually stop and exorcise his spirit about two hours ago."

Harry instantly looked horrified. "Did he do anything?"

"No," Dumbledore answered readily. "And Tom won't possess you again, I've made sure of that. Why don't you head back to your Common Room now?"

"Alright, Professor." Harry left the room and had begun heading down the halls when Quetz spoke up.

_:I forgot to mention, about seventy percent of your magic and seventy percent of your Terran spells have been sealed away by Dumbledore.: _

_SAY WHAT?! _Harry almost yelled aloud, but managed to keep his face to a disgruntled expression.

_:You heard me.:_

Harry took a deep breath, calming himself. _I am calm, I am calm, I am calm… OK Quetz, just what does that mean for me?_

_:It has good and bad points. Let me first list the good points. Firstly, having fewer Terran spells is allowing you better access to your remaining magical stores. Secondly, based on the preliminary tests, it seems that all activity in the sealed part of your magical core has stopped, which means that your sealed magic will not be multiplying the Terran spells there. Additionally, I believe that despite the fact that your magic has been split, your combined magic is still allowing a maximum of one thousand of each spell, so you do not need to worry about suddenly having to hold two thousand of each spell. Thirdly, practicing with your current magic will allow you better control. Currently, you waste quite a bit of magic with your spells to get the job done, since you have so much. This is an opportunity to better yourself at controlling it. Now, the bad points. Your Animagus form has been sealed away; you cannot access it.:_

_THAT SON OF A BITCH! _Harry mentally screamed. _I'm going to fucking KILL HIM! _

_:There is more. You now only have the power to do approximately fifth year spells, and it's meant to last for three years.:_

_Let's see now, first I'll start off with breaking his wand, and then I'll cut off his hands, then I'll make him drink a Magic-Repressing Potion to keep his accidental magic from stopping me, and then the true torture will start. I'll start with burning off his genitals… slowly… _Harry thought maliciously.

_:I do have good news, however. I believe I can destroy the seal.:_

_How soon?_

_:It should be destroyed by the start of your third year.:_

_Great. Get started, please. _At the moment, though, Harry had to burn off some anger, so he went to his training room and began attacking the desks with his gunblade, imagining them to have Dumbledore's head. When he was through with the destruction, Harry sighed and used _Reparo _to repair the desks before returning to the Slytherin Common Room. It was getting late, and he needed sleep.

Thankfully, very few questioned him about the day Harry had left Hogwarts over the next several days. No one wanted to touch the subject of being possessed by Voldemort. Additionally, no one believed it would happen again, since they were convinced that Dumbledore had exorcised the spirit from Harry's body. _If there's one thing I'm thankful for, it's his reputation, _Harry thought gratefully.

Harry did, however, tell his friends the truth. They deserved to know. "I really was going to leave the school," Harry admitted.

"What?" Hermione gasped, scandalized.

"I would've come back!" Harry told her in a reassuring manner. "But as someone else using my Metamorph power."

"What stopped you?" Daphne asked bluntly.

"Dumbledore's Locator Ritual. Even if I was disguised as someone else, he would have detected me very quickly," Harry explained. "There was no point in trying to create a false identity when it would be seen through in a matter of days."

"How'd you get back, and keep your memories, then?" Theo queried curiously.

"Oh, I lost a duel on purpose to him. He Obliviated me." Harry grinned maniacally. "But what he doesn't know is that he Obliviated a copy of my memories outside of my core shields."

Everyone laughed at that. "So, shall we continue the way we were prior to Dumbledore's discovery?" Blaise asked.

Harry nodded. "Makes the most sense. Hopefully I can continue to dupe him."

So, with that, the five began studying for exams. However, the days quickly became a continual source of frustration for Harry; he had, upon Quetzalcoatl's suggestion, tried casting all of his fourth-year and up spells. Harry had found that he could no longer perform the _Arresto Momentum _charm properly, and it was driving him absolutely insane. He was back at the stage where the ball would slow down, but not stop. His frustration quickly turned into a mania: "I _will _have this bloody charm mastered!" Harry swore to his friends, despite the fact that it was April. He had less than a month to train until he would be forced to return to his relatives once again, and he still had to make room to study for the theory exams.

Quetz pointed out that Harry's control, at least, was improving at a good pace. Harry had a tendency of over-charging his spells due to his powerful emotions, but utilizing Occlumency in conjunction with casting spells helped Harry get a feel for the standard amount of magic. As Quetz pointed out, why waste magic when a smaller amount can get the same thing done?

Harry, for the first time, felt the strange hollow emptiness of being magically exhausted as he practiced the _Arresto Momentum _charm. It was definitely not a sensation he wanted to feel again. After that time, he worked doubly hard on mastering his control; he didn't want to collapse from a few over-charged spells.

The end of April approached, and Harry suddenly remembered that he had forgotten to send Hedwig to Griphook to ask how the Ministry detected underage magic. So, just before his Transfiguration exam, he wrote the note and sent it off.

After easily completing all of the class exams – both practical and theoretical – Harry got a response.

_Harry Potter,_

_An inquiry into the ability of the Ministry to detect underage magic has revealed that they have magic-detectors in Muggle-born neighborhoods. They rely on the parents of halfbloods and purebloods to enforce the Restriction of Underage Sorcery. _

_I took a bit of initiative and looked into wards that may block the magic-detectors; there is a goblin ward that will accomplish this. It costs 300 Galleons per acre of land, if you wish to have some goblins install it. Please inform me of your decision on this matter. _

_Yours sincerely, _

_Griphook_

Harry stared at the letter. "Guys?" he asked in a calm voice. "You may want to see this." He passed the letter to Hermione, noting that she very shortly looked outraged.

"Why that… that…"

"No-good, rotten, biased, discriminatory?" Harry offered.

"Yes," Hermione agreed, "that no-good, rotten, biased, discriminatory law should be abolished! Destroyed! Utterly annihilated!"

None of the rest of them looked particularly shocked. "I knew that purebloods could practice at home," Theo admitted. "My dad tells me to always practice." Theo's face darkened, which was a rare sight for the happy-go-lucky twelve-year-old.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked. Theo merely looked at him with haunted eyes, begging silently not to pursue that line of questioning right now. Harry nodded slowly and dropped it. "Blaise?"

"I am unsurprised, because my parents told me before I started Hogwarts about the Underage Restriction, and how they honored that law. I cannot practice magic over the holidays," Blaise explained shortly.

"Since I'm friends with Theo, he told me early on," Daphne said easily.

"So, do you think I should ward Privet Drive against the magic-detectors?" Harry asked.

Blaise shook his head. "It would be unwise. You are quite famous; no doubt the Ministry is paying special attention to your whereabouts. Additionally, I would not put it past the Headmaster himself to check personally."

"Not a good idea, right," Harry concluded, mentally cursing the fact that he had no living wizard relatives. "Damn, that means that I can't use magic over the summer again."

"I'm afraid so," Daphne agreed, sympathizing with Hermione and Harry's plight.

"But it doesn't stop me from placing some wards around Hermione's house," Harry pointed out.

"Normally, I would protest, but if it means getting around that bigoted law, I'm all for it," Hermione said forcefully. "Besides, I don't see the point of having that law at all. How are we supposed to get better at magic if we can't practice when we want?"

Harry and Theo grinned at each other. "I think we've been a bit of a bad influence on her, Theo."

"I'm afraid so, Harry. Can you imagine Hermione _questioning _and even _breaking _the rules before she met us?" Harry, Theo and Daphne all snickered, while Blaise looked terribly amused.

"Oh shut up."

In the end, Harry arranged for the goblins to install the wards around Hermione's house. In exchange, Hermione asked her parents to let Harry over as soon as his stint at the Dursleys was over. Harry promptly asked Dumbledore – acting as he should from the Memory Charm – when he could leave the Dursleys for the summer.

Dumbledore stroked his beard contemplatively, pleased that the Weasleys had made such a good impact on Harry the previous summer. Yet he couldn't simply let Harry stay at the Burrow; he'd grow too accustomed to comfort, and Dumbledore wanted him intimately familiar with pain so he would actively prevent the pain of others as best he could. "You need to stay with your relatives for at least a month or two, Harry, for your own protection."

"What protection? Why do I have to stay there?" Harry asked, curious what Dumbledore's answer was.

"Harry, Voldemort is still out there as a spirit, and many of his followers may wish to enact their revenge on you. So, I devised a blood ward that would take advantage of your mother's protection. As long as you're with those of your mother's blood – your Aunt Petunia and Cousin Dudley – the ward protects you. The longer you stay there every year, the stronger the ward is, but the longer you are gone, the weaker it grows. It needs at least a month, perhaps two, to fully recharge for the next year."

_And the multi-million Galleon question is, does that ward actually exist over Privet Drive? _

_:Who knows? Besides, it doesn't matter; Dumbledore expects you to just go along with it, not question it.:_

Harry nodded miserably; he really wasn't looking forward to the Dursleys again. Dumbledore smiled benignly. "Don't worry, Harry. You'll be able to leave come the first of August."

_Figures he would pick the day AFTER my birthday. Damn it. _"Yes sir."

Soon enough, the results of the exams came in, and Harry had done well, but Hermione had beaten him in theory as usual – but in Herbology, even she was beaten. Neville had placed first in both theory and practical, and Hermione found herself torn between being disgruntled that she wasn't first in theory and being proud of the somewhat-timid boy. Neville, it seemed, had a green thumb and instinctual knowledge for plants that Hermione just couldn't emulate.

Hermione beat Harry in Transfiguration for being the best in practical, and Blaise tied with Harry for first in Potions. Harry was the champion of Defense Against the Dark Arts, though, rivaled only by a couple of Ravenclaws, Hermione and Daphne. In Charms, Theo and Harry had tied for first, which disappointed their year in Ravenclaw; Slytherins had beaten them even at their Head of House's class. History of Magic, of course, Hermione and some Ravenclaw beat everyone.

It was then that the second-year students received a form to fill out for their classes the next year. Harry, thinking about his future, chose Arithmancy and Ancient Runes. Daphne wanted Arithmancy and Care of Magical Creatures. Theo opted for Care of Magical Creatures and Divination, and Blaise picked out Ancient Runes and Divination. None of them wanted Muggle Studies, though; a Slytherin in Muggle Studies was basically committing political suicide in Slytherin, and besides, Hermione was able to fill everyone in easily.

Hermione, as a Gryffindor, had no such restrictions, and thus filled in all of the options, much to the amusement of her friends.

"At least drop Muggle Studies, you're Muggleborn!" Harry pleaded with his friend. "You could probably teach the class!"

"It'll be interesting to see the wizarding perspective of Muggles," Hermione insisted stubbornly.

"How are you going to take all five subjects?" Blaise asked curiously.

"I've made arrangements with Professor McGonagall," Hermione explained. "I'll be able to take them."

"Make sure you don't wear yourself out," Daphne warned.

"I know," Hermione said irritably, but then her expression softened. "Thanks for worrying about me, guys."

"Eh, it's no problem," Theo answered, waving it off. "We're friends, right?"

For some reason, Hermione hugged them all before hurrying away. Harry suspected she was trying to hide her tears. Little point in running, then; as Slytherins they were clever enough to know why she was running.

Finally, it was the night before the students would get on the Hogwarts Express for home. As everyone settled in their seats for the Leaving Feast, Dumbledore rose and the crowd fell silent. "Students, you have completed yet another year at Hogwarts. For those among us who have graduated, I wish you luck in your future. For everyone else, I look forward to seeing you next term. I know that this year's term has been eventful, what with the Chamber of Secrets ordeal and Harry Potter's possession" – _I knew he would bring me into this somehow, _Harry thought bitterly – "but I hope that you will take the time over summer to empty your heads for next year so we can fill them back up again with more knowledge." He, and most of the rest of the hall, smiled at that.

"In any case, it is time to award the House Cup. Congratulations, Slytherin, for winning both the Quidditch and the House Cups." Snape looked smugly at McGonagall, who was carefully expressionless as the Slytherin table erupted into cheers. "And now, let the feast begin!"

The feast, as usual, was wonderful, and Harry went to bed with an almost uncomfortably full stomach. He knew he had to stock up, for his summer with the Dursleys would almost certainly bring him back down again, with their hatred of him going so far as to deny him proper portions at meals.

The trip back to Platform Nine and Three Quarters had Harry and his friends in the back compartment as usual. Harry once again extracted promises from all of his friends to train themselves as best they could while they were away from Hogwarts, but to hide their weapons from their parents at all costs.

Eventually, Draco Malfoy made his obligatory visit to the back compartment, without his goons. "Listen, Potter and friends, I'm not here to fight. I have a question."

Harry's eyebrow rose. "Yes, Malfoy?"

"Let's suppose for a moment that I knew who had given Weaslette that diary, the one that possessed her," Draco began slowly. "What should I do?"

Harry looked at Draco piercingly, using Legilimency to extract the identity. He was not truly surprised to find it was Lucius Malfoy, but he was surprised that Draco was asking for his opinion on what to do. "What brought this on?"

Draco sighed. "You're gaining influence throughout the castle, even though you're a Slytherin. You have, according to the Sorting Hat, the traits of all four Houses, so I thought you would be able to give me my options and how they would affect things."

Harry's friends looked at Draco in astonishment, but Harry merely nodded. Deciding not to mention his knowledge of the perpetrator, Harry closed his eyes and thought for a moment. "You have a few options. You can report this knowledge to the authorities, meaning Dumbledore or the Ministry of Magic, but given the corruption in the Ministry, if the man has any money or influence at all, he'll get out of it, and then target you in some fashion. Even if you report anonymously, money will provide your name easily. Additionally, once your name comes out as the one who reported the man truly responsible for the Chamber of Secrets reopening, you will lose many, if not all, of your shadier contacts, but you gain trust on the Light side, the Gryffindor types.

"The next option is to do nothing but keep the information secret until a later date where it could become a huge weapon as blackmail or the final straw to send him to Azkaban. If the person finds out you have that information and plan to use it against him, he will plan to silence you. In this case, your political stature will depend entirely on how you play it. You could end up dead, or you might be able to gain more influence somewhere else.

"A third option is to take matters into your own hands. If you believe he deserves punishment, do it yourself. Inconvenience him, hurt him, it's all up to you. Of course, that runs the risk of him finding out and hurting you worse politically, monetarily, or physically. Those are your options, Draco. But if I may ask, why do you care? I mean, when the Chamber was opened, you were enthusiastically supporting whoever was going to kill all the Muggleborns. What changed?"

Draco looked at Harry. "I thought Dumbledore would have stopped it from happening, or at least found the Heir quickly enough. I mean, the Chamber was opened fifty years ago, too. But when he was sent away, and the attacks sped up… I wasn't sure the monster and the Heir could differentiate between Mudbloods and purebloods. I mean, we're all humans, and purebloods have tried for years to show proof of the difference of quality of Muggle blood and magical blood.

"My fears were realized when, on that day, Weaslette was taken into the Chamber of Secrets. Mudbloods weren't the only ones being targeted. The Weasleys, despite their lack of funds and their title of blood traitors, were still purebloods. They haven't married outside of the wizarding world for decades. The only reason they're blood traitors is because they don't follow proper pureblood tradition."

Draco took a deep breath. "I've been thinking about this for the last few months. The man who gave Weaslette the diary, he could have killed us all, the heirs to the wizarding world, just for a chance to bring back the Dark Lord. I want to make sure he can't do it again. Thank you, Potter, for your observations, and if you tell anyone about our conversation, I'll make you rue the day you were born." With that, he sneered – though it lacked its usual malice – and left.

As Draco left, Harry and his friends looked at each other. In essence, Draco wanted to keep his own skin, but he had also showed a little concern for others. Granted, he was concerned about his fellow purebloods, but it was still concern. That meant that he wasn't completely Lucius's clone, that he was capable of changing for the better.

"Well, that was unexpected," Harry finally said.

"What do you think he'll do?" Hermione asked.

"I don't know," Harry said honestly. "The man he was talking about was his own father, Lucius. Lucius may be evil, but he's still Draco's dad, so all bets are off on this one. In my honest opinion, I think he'll work from behind the scenes and keep Lucius from doing anything similar, and perhaps inconvenience him a bit. Perhaps he'll free one of the Malfoy house-elves or something."

"Eh, I'd rather not try to figure out what the blonde's up to," Theo whined. "Who's up for Exploding Snap?"

"Sure."

"Why not?"

"I'm in."

"I shall play as well."

All too soon, after several hands of Exploding Snap, the train lurched to a stop and Harry left Platform Nine and Three Quarters with his friends. Harry nodded at his friends. "See ya next fall."

"Or sooner if I can manage," Hermione corrected.

"Bye, Harry," the others said.

Harry bowed his head for a moment, eyes closing as a small smile appeared on his face. _What did I ever do to deserve them? _"Bye, everyone."

"Come on, boy, we have a schedule to keep!" Vernon Dursley yelled.

"Yes, Uncle, I'm coming!" Harry said irritably as he walked over to his hated and hateful relatives. But even as Harry left the wizarding world for the summer, he had the sense that his time at the Dursleys' would be full of change.

Full of magic.

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That's the end of "Worldly Secrets"! Hope to hear from ya, and then see ya again in the next installment, "Worldly Prisoners"!

Read and Review, please!


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